Samurai Legend
by Freedan the Eternal
Summary: Two youths are transported to a parallel reality and find themselves reliving the events of Sengoku era Japan in a world fraught with magic and monsters.
1. Chapter 1

**Samurai Legend**

 **Written by Freedan**

 **Thanks to Hannah, for the seed of the idea.**

 **Chapter 1: Arrival**

The sun did little to break the chill hanging in the air as a thick mist hung over the wetlands. The rain the previous night had turned the ground to mush as much as knee deep on the armies of men staring across the swamp at each other. And the poor conditions did nothing to change the minds of those gathered, and two ingenious minds were already reading how they would adapt their plans to the muck that would hinder any form of charge directly toward their foe.

One of these men was Kenshin Uesugi, also known as the Dragon of Echigo, many believe him to be the mortal incarnation of the god of war himself. Dressed in white and clutching his sword in one hand, in the other he lifted a cup of rice-wine, draining it in one swallow before throwing it into the mud by his feet.

"Come, Nemesis…" he growled, leveling his gaze across the field at the target of his ire.

And that target was named Shingen Takeda, also known as the Tiger of Kai. Wearing the bright red armor of his clan, surrounded by his men in the same color, his piercing blue eyes looking out from the mask hiding his face. He held in one hand a war-fan, which he idly tapped against the palm of his other as he returned Kenshin's gaze from across the swamp.

"Well then, God of War," he said, "Shall we begin?"

Shingen raised the war fan and then pointed it forward. With wordless war cries, his men moved around him. The swamp nullified the Takeda's greatest advantage, their legendary cavalry, but he had a plan, and so he sent a relatively small number of men marching forward through the swamp.

Kenshin's men marched forward as well to meet this threat, into the knee-high much.

But it was only a distraction. Kenshin nodded to the man on his left, who quickly sprinted away to deliver the message to the troops waiting in hiding on the northeastern side. Led by the Uesugi retained named Kanetsugu Naoi, they began circling around the east side of the swamp to catch the Takeda's unguarded flank.

But as it turned out, it was not unguarded. Before they were halfway, they were met by a Takeda force led by Yukimura Saneda sent out to intercept the flanking move. The red and white force clashed, even before the forces in the swamp had met.

With a battle cry, Yukimura came at Kanetsugu, the red warrior's spear turned aside at the last second by the sword of the one clad in white, the two's faces coming close as their forces clashed around them.

"Lord Shingen saw through your weak plan," Yukimura said, "And now my brother is about to take your unguarded flank!"

"So you say," Kanetsugu replied, "But perhaps you did not realize that Lord Kenshin already planned for that, and his son, Kagekatsu, is already on his way to intercept your brother."

Distant battle cries and the ring of steel could suddenly be heard from the western side of the swamp as well as Nobuyuki Saneda and Kagekatsu Uesugi discovered each other and their forces clashed.

It was almost a game at this point. So many times had the Uesugi and Takeda clashed, neither one able to strike the finishing blow. And it would be no different today. Eventually both forces would withdraw with neither having sustained any real damage.

Kenshin Uesugi and Shingen Takeda, two geniuses of their time, but even they would not be prepared for the darkness rising in the west…

* * *

"…because one man was about to take Japan by storm… Are you even listening?"

I looked up. "Huh? Oh, yeah, totally."

Hannah sighed, getting up from her seat and walking over to my desk and snatched the paper from in front of me before I could react. "Hey, it's not done!" I protested.

"This is what you were doing during that?" Hannah asked, holding it up in front of me.

The sketch wasn't bad. In fact It was good, just missing details on the character's armor and face. "Hey, it's related," I said, "It's that Yukimura guy you were talking about."

"Oh yes, just with fire trailing off his spear," Hannah said, looking at it, and sighed again, "Okay, it does look good. And the fact you draw like this, I've no idea how you failed to get into art school. But you asked me to help with your world history, not art."

I groaned, leaning back in my seat. "I really don't see what's so important about dead guys from a thousand years ago."

"Sengoku Japan was four hundred years ago, thank you, not a thousand," Hannah said, "And you'd think it would be interesting to you if only because it's full of violence and death, just like those video games you play."

I looked at my watch. Aw, crap, it was time to go to work.

"Look, just tell me if you're not going to take this seriously," Hannah said, "Because if you're not, I'd rather not waste my time."

"All right," I said, standing up and grabbing my uniform shirt off the desk to pull it on over my T-shirt, "I'm sorry. I'll take it more seriously. But I have to get to work."

Hannah looked at her watch. "Oh, and I've got class in a little bit," she said, "Okay, tomorrow we'll pick up with Nobunaga. I think that's a guy you'll be interested in."

"I really hope you don't mean that like it sounded," I said as I headed for the door.

She laughed. "Hey, it's your brain that went there," she said, "Although, the Japanese at the time did have a lot in common with the ancient Greeks about that sort of thing…"

I really didn't need to know that. "I'm out," I said, "See you later."

"Don't forget the rent's due next week, Jack!" Hannah said, "Don't you dare blow your half on toys again!"

"Yeah, look who's talking," I muttered, thinking about the absurd number of Pokemon figures in her room.

* * *

I should have gone with a dorm room at the college. I thought that every day. I mean, at the time, sharing an apartment with my cousin didn't sound bad. I was expecting more privacy than a dorm would have given me. Fat chance of that happening. Plus I have to work a crappy job to help pay the rent and food.

A job that manages to remind me every day why I hate it. You know, I never thought about the plight of service staff at fast-food places until I'd worked such a job for a couple months. That whole mentality that they're uneducated, worthless people that aren't smart enough to do anything else. Something I picked up in high-school, I guess.

Quite frankly I'm amazed more of them don't get an assault rifle and murder their entire customer base. That thought seemed awfully tempting as I listened to this woman who was complaining about something. I think that her "lightly cooked" pizza calzone was cold in the middle, and all I could think of was how incredibly idiotic she was for not realizing that by cooking it less, it obviously wasn't going to be as hot.

Also didn't help my mood that she had brought back less than a third of the whole thing, having eaten the rest And she wanted a full refund.

I'll admit, I kind of zoned out. I got my manager to handle it, because I'm not even supposed to deal with complaints. Then I'd gotten one of the others to take over the register so I could go to the back and do some prep work. I'd actually calmed down a bit and was feeling better after a few minutes, and was innocently mixing a batch of coleslaw when the manager came back to see me.

"All right, Jack, what's with the attitude?" he demanded.

"What attitude?" I asked.

"Well, according to that customer, you ignored her order, and served it to her cold, and then when she brought it back, you walked away from her," he said.

"I walked away to get you!" I said, "And besides…"

"I don't want to hear it!" he cut me off, "I should fire you, but I'm giving you one last chance. You go, right now. Get rid of the attitude. If you don't shape up when you come back tomorrow, you're going to be fired. Got it?"

"Fine," I said, pulling off my gloves and turning for the door. I just left the coleslaw there, clocked out, and left the building. Looking at my watch, I realized I was only leaving an hour early anyway.

I decided it was best to assume I was going to need a new job fairly soon. That was hardly the first time someone had complained about me, and thanks to that bullshit of "the customer is always right," I wasn't even allowed to defend myself.

I'll say this, I'd never give service staff crap for the rest of my life, having been through this kind of garbage.

Having no place else to go, I simply went back to the apartment. Hannah would be in class for another half-hour, so I'd at least have time to relax for a little bit. As I walked into the building, the receptionist waved to me. "A delivery came for you while you were gone," she said, and placed it on the counter for me.

I knew instantly what it was from the shape of the package. "Thank you," I said, picking it up and heading to the elevator.

I nearly kicked open the door and slammed it behind me, already tearing at the paper wrapping on the package.

Yeah, Hannah would like it, but she didn't have to know how much I spent on this. Ebay was an amazing thing, I thought as I slid the first one out of the package. Oh, man, it was going to look so badass on the wall. Yeah, I might not care much about the people involved in Japanese history, but the weapons were something else. A long, curved blade in a blue sheath. I started to pull it free when I heard the lock on the door click.

Hannah? She wasn't supposed to be home yet! My first thought was to hide the package, but the door was already open as she stepped into the room.

"Jack?" she asked, seeing me by the table, "What are you doing home…" Her eyes went to the package, then to the sword in my hand. "What is this time?" she demanded, any amount of good humor vanishing from her voice.

"Oh, just a wall decoration," I said, holding up the sword.

"A freaking katana?!" she said.

"Oh, come on, it's not like I paid much for it," I said, "It was like fifty bucks for the pair. They're just replicas."

Hannah reached the package and pulled out the second one. This one was in a red sheath. "Wow, that's heavy," she said, "What exactly possessed you to buy something like these?"

Because I thought it would look cool on the wall," I said, and slid the blade of the one I held about an inch from the sheath, revealing steel polished to a mirror sheen, "Like I said, just replicas, probably not even…"

I stopped at the stab of pain in my thumb as I touched the edge, and turned my thumb over. There was a red line there and a small amount of blood welling up.

"…sharp," I finished, staring at the red line on my skin.

"Nice job, genius," Hannah said, "Look, I don't care how cheap they were, you can't keep things like this around here."

"Oh, sure thing, Mom," I said, "You know what, they're staying just because of that. I'm just going to hang them on my wall, and you're going to deal with it.

"Yeah, hang them over the head of your bead, so they can fall and cut your head right off," Hannah said, "I wonder if this one is as sharp…"

As she slid the blade from the sheath, something changed in the air. A humming sound rose as if from nowhere. And the blade in her hands started to glow red. "This thing is getting warm…" she said.

And the other was getting cold in my hands. I looked down to where the blade was exposed and realized it was also glowing, this one a deep blue. And it was still getting colder, almost like ice.

"What the hell did you buy?" Hannah demanded.

The humming was getting louder, and the walls were shaking, the table skidding across the floor.

"Um, I think a tired cliché?" I said.

She was trying to push the blade she held back into the sheath, but it seemed to resist her efforts. And then the world fell apart. The walls moved away from us and the floor dropped out from under us. I heard Hannah scream, and it was suddenly cut off as we hit something hard.

The pain of the landing for a moment kept me from realizing I was wet, and it was raining on me. I pushed myself up, groaning.

"Jack?" Hannah's voice asked, "Are you okay?"

"I think so…" I said, "What happened?"

Thunder cracked overhead. So we were outside in a thunderstorm. That was just great.

"Glowing swords… sudden change of location…" Hannah looked up, "Why does this feel like the start of a bad fan fiction?"

Well, she was reacting with great aplomb at least. What even happened? I stood up, looking around. It was so dark, I couldn't see more than a few feet. I checked the sword in my hands. Though it was still far colder to the touch than it seemed it should be, the glowing had ceased.

"Where are we?" Hannah asked, standing up as well.

"I'm waiting for you to tell me," I said.

Maybe it was lucky, maybe not, but I looked up as lightning flashed, and I saw it in the distance. The silhouettes of men, high on a hill in the distance above us, all on horseback. And below them, at the bottom of a nearly vertical slope, I could see the shapes of tents.

"There are people that way," I said, "Unless you've got a better idea."

"I suppose not," Hannah said, "We need to at least get out of this rain."

We started moving. This seemed utterly crazy, though looking back on it now, I'm actually surprised how well we both reacted. What was going on in my head at that point, I couldn't tell you. I had this strange mix of anxiety and excitement. Something had happened, something completely unexpected, and I had a strange feeling that pushing forward was going to lead to good things.

Oh how wrong I was.

We were closer, and lightning flashed again, and this time Hannah saw them as well. And what happened in that moment, I couldn't believe. The men on top the cliff pushed their horses, and over the edge they went, stampeding down the steep slope toward the camp below.

"They're insane!" Hannah said.

The horses' hooves pounded like thunder, and lightning flashed again, and that was the first time I saw him.

The man at the front of the stampede, in gleaming steel armor, his sword held high over his head. I couldn't make out his face at this distance, but he still stood out from the others so strongly, it was as though there was a powerful aura surrounding him, almost making him glow.

And then the screams started. The horses reached the base of the cliff. Some fell, throwing their riders, but most did not, and they charged directly into the camp, trampling tents and men, swords swinging and striking down others.

"Oh my god," Hannah whispered.

What did we walk into?

Men scattered, screaming in terror. And then I realized some of them were coming directly toward us.

"Oh, god," I said, "Hannah, we have to get out of here!"

We turned, only to see more on the other side of us, running toward the fighting.

"Who are they?" one of the men asked.

"I don't know them," said one of the others.

"They must be with the enemy!" said another still.

And they were drawing swords, moving toward us.

I don't know why I did it, but I pulled the sword in my hands free from its sheath. "Back off!" I said, pointing it toward them.

They charged us, yelling at the tops of their lungs. We were dead. I knew it. I closed my eyes and swung the sword blindly, not really knowing what I hoped to accomplish.

Their cries suddenly cut off as a crackling sound filled the air. I opened my eyes and couldn't believe what I saw. All of them were covered in a thick layer of ice, frozen solid.

"Jack, how did you do that?" Hannah asked.

"I did that?" I asked, completely lost, "I had my eyes closed."

"Are you serious?" Hannah asked, "The sword glowed and then they were covered in ice!"

"Who are you?!" a heavy voice demanded from near us.

No time to relax, obviously. We turned toward it to see a lone man standing there. "You're not one of us, but you attack our enemy," he said, "Identify yourselves!"

"Hey, chill out, pal," I said, "We don't even know what's going on!"

"You're heroes, and that means I can't just let you go free," he said, and ran at us, drawing a pair of swords.

And it was over faster than I could blink. I tried waving the sword again, but nothing happened, and then he was on us, the sword knocked from my hand and knocked flat on my back. Hannah screamed, and light flared, and I couldn't believe my eyes as a jet of flame shot from the sword in her hands, though harmlessly firing into the air.

And then she was disarmed as well. The man hadn't been alone, and more fell upon us.

"Restrain them!" the man ordered them, "Bring them to us once the battle is over!"

I was forced over onto my face in the mud, my hands dragged behind my back in and tied. There were too many of them to fight off. They weren't even finished tying us before I heard someone shouting. "It's a route! The Imagawa are fleeing!"

"Excellent!" the man had replied, "Our lord's plan worked after all!"

"Even better, sir, Yoshimoto has been severely wounded! He's cornered in the canyon!"

"Bring the prisoners! This will all be over in a matter of moments, and I want to be there!" the man said.

Hannah and I were jerked up to our feet. I couldn't see where they were taking us.

"Make room!" the man shouted, pushing through a crowd of gathered men. For the first time I was able to see the men around us and make note of their clothing, or rather, armor made of leather and studded with metal.

"This is that tired cliché," I muttered to Hannah, "I think we've gone back in time."

"Oh, shut up," she replied.

We were dragged to the front of the crowd. I guess this guy wanted to make sure everyone knew we were his prisoners, but when we were able to see what was happening, I was surprised.

It was the man from the front of the cavalry charge. His armor was so different from the others, and looked more like European design while the others around were definitely Asian in origin. And while I'm not one to say it, he was unarguably an incredibly handsome man, with his hair tied up in a tight topknot, and on his face a pencil mustache and triangular beard, now down painstakingly trimmed into those states.

I'd never have the patience to take care of my facial hair like that.

There were two others standing in the small clearing among the men with him. The first was barely on his feet, his back against the rock wall, holding one hand against his side. And the other, a somewhat short, portly man, was holding a sword out toward the one in the shining armor.

"Wait a minute…" Hannah said, "This is familiar for some reason…"

The man in the steel armor walked toward the others, his face utterly expressionless. The one holding the sword, took one step back, holding his sword out. But the other made no effort to go around, or even defend himself, his sword held calmly at his side. And I realized the one holding the sword was shaking. The first was nearly upon him, the tip of the sword only inches from his chest.

And then the most unexpected thing happened. The one holding the sword dropped it, falling to his knees. And the other smiled, walking past him without even looking down.

The wounded man pressed back against the wall. One hand against his side, he lifted the other, and something happened. I couldn't believe my eyes as a ball of flame materialized in his grasp. But the first man was quicker, lifting his own hand, a ball of blackness appearing from his palm, and thrusting his hand forward, the ball becoming a beam that shot across the distance between them and piercing the chest of the other.

The wounded man cried out in agony, and Hannah gasped. The black beam faded, and left a hole in his chest that blood and innards spilled from as he fell to his knees, then onto his face. The hole was visible in his back, the horrific image of blood and organs still there.

"And now all the world will know the name of Nobunaga," the first man said, "Yoshimoto Imagawa is dead."

The gathered crowd raised their weapons and cried their victory.

Oh, god, what had we been dropped into?

* * *

We were dragged off and thrown into a tent, our feet bound as well, and told that the lord would decide what to do with us in the morning.

"Hannah?" I asked, "Are you all right?"

"I think so," she said, "What the hell… Those damn swords you bought did this!"

"Like you said, the start of a bad fan fiction," I replied.

"You do realize where we are, don't you?" she asked.

"Not a clue," I said.

"Oh, come on," Hannah said, "That name, the same one I told you earlier this morning! Nobunaga! We're in Fuedal Japan somehow, and now prisoners of one of the most brutal and vicious warlords of the time! Though I'm pretty sure I don't remember anything about people creating fire or beams from their fingers."

"Well, yeah," I said, "Got to admit, that one guy didn't seem too bothered by us shooting ice and fire from those swords either."

"Not to mention they're apparently speaking English instead of Japanese, and on top of that, the man Nobunaga killed, Yoshimoto Imagawa. He should have said the name the other way, Imagawa Yoshimoto. In Japan, the family name comes first."

"Maybe it's for the convenience of an English speaking audience," I said, "Like us."

She shot me a glare.

"Okay, look, if those swords bought us here, maybe they can get us back home," Hannah said, then sighed, "Assuming we live long enough to find out."

"You don't think they're going to kill us, do you?" I asked.

"This is Nobunaga we're talking about," Hannah said, "He's a guy that, after they surrendered, lined up all the leaders of a clan that opposed him and killed them via firing squad."

"Oh, god damn," I muttered.

"If you actually read any history, you'd know this stuff," Hannah said, "That man is a monster."

"Only one thing, then," I said, and pulled against my bonds. But they were too tight, and the ropes just burned against my wrists.

"Even if you get loose, we don't know where they put those swords," Hannah said, "We're better off just waiting until morning. If we can convince Nobunaga about it, maybe he'll let us go home."

"And what's to stop him from killing us like he did that other guy just to keep the swords for himself?" I asked.

"I don't know!" Hannah said, "Just… let me do the talking, okay?"

* * *

It was a long night, and when morning did come, I'd not managed to sleep a bit. I think the reality of the situation was sinking in, and I found myself shivering, and not from the cold.

The storm ended, and at some point, I don't know how long we'd lain there when the tent flap opened, sunlight falling over us. Men came in, picking us up and cutting the ropes from our ankles and pushed us out into the open. And waiting there for us was the man who had attacked us just last night.

Now that I had a clear look at him, he was a large man, with a thick full beard, but a receding hairline. He was massively muscular, and his skin was deeply suntanned.

"You're coming with me," he said, and turned to start walking.

We were pushed along by the other men there. They marched us through the camp, surrounded by other men, who were busy pulling down tents and saddling horses. It looked like they were getting ready to move out.

We were ushered into a small enclosure. There was no roof, but walls of cloth had been put up, and the ground covered with padding. At the far end was a seat. There were only three people in the "room." One was a youth on his knees beside the seat, a drawn sword resting on his knees. In the seat was the man from last night, Nobunaga. And finally, the third was the portly man that had dropped his sword when Nobunaga stared him down. He was on his knees in front of the seat, his eyes on the ground in front of him.

"Stop," said the man escorting us, holding us at the entrance.

"Failing to protect your lord, Takechiyo," Nobunaga was saying, "A very grievous offence, had that lord survived. Though I suppose you knew he was not going to survive at that point."

"I'm afraid it was nothing so devious as that," replied the other, "Even with the tip of my blade pointed at you, Lord Nobunaga, the only thing I could think of was our childhood together."

He lifted his head, looking Nobunaga in the eye. "Do you laugh at me now, my lord? For being too weak to bear my burden?"

Nobunaga smiled, and rose to his feet, stepping toward the other and looking down at his face. "I would never laugh at you," he said, "For I know, though you may be in tears with the effort, there is no burden too great for you to bear, if that burden is worth bearing. Your clan were little better than slaves under the Imagawa. Now is the time to grasp the future, and decide the best course for yourself, Takechiyo."

"I believe I understand, my lord," Takechiyo said.

Nobunaga smiled, offering his hand to Takechiyo, and helped him to his feet.

"Though I must let you know, I have not been Takechiyo in years," he said, "When I came of age, my name became Motoyasu Matsudaira."

"Very well, Motoyasu," Nobunaga said, and gestured to the group standing by the entrance, "I'm afraid I do not have time to reminisce about the old days now, but when next we meet, we must trade stories of what became of us after parting ways. You are free to go"

"Yes, my lord," Motoyasu said, "And I thank you for your mercy."

He turned away from Nobunaga and walked past us, to a waiting horse. Nogunaga returned to his seat and motioned toward us. We were pushed into the enclosure and forced onto our knees on the mats in front of Nobunaga.

"Such strange clothes they wear," Nobunaga said, looking down at us, "What have you brought me, Katsuie?

"They are not Imagawa, my lord," the other, Katsuie said, "But I do not recognize the clan crest on this one."

He pointed at the company logo on my shirt, making me realize I was still wearing my uniform from work.

"Hmm," Nobunaga leaned forward, resting his chin on his hand as he looked at us, "I don't believe they're from any clan. You, the boy, from where do you hail?"

He was talking to me, I realized. "Um.., the city of Los Angeles?" I said.

"That doesn't exist yet, you idiot," Hannah hissed at me.

Nobunaga glanced at her, but responded, "I am not familiar. You are from a far away land, then?"

"Very far," I said.

"And you are the same?" Nobunaga asked, looking at Hannah.

"Yes, my lord," she said, "I am his cousin."

"Ah, kin, that makes more sense," Nobunaga said, "Now, Katsuie tells me the two of you are heroes…"

"Oh, no, sir, nothing of the sort," Hannah said.

"Don't lie, girl!" Katsuie said, "You possess the powers of a hero, and proved that when you shot fire at me last night. And the boy froze a group of Imagawa solid in ice."

"That was just the swords, sir, not us," Hannah said.

"You expect me to believe a sword can possess such magic?" Katsuie said.

Nobunaga held up a hand to silence him. "Bring their weapons," he said, "I wish to see this."

The swords, in the red and blue sheaths, were brought and laid on the ground in front of Nobunaga.

"So, you claim these weapons possess the power you showed, and not you yourselves," he said, and reached down to grasp the hilt of one.

I never expected what happened next. Nobunaga screamed, and trails of electricity shot across his body as he was thrown back, his seat tipping over. The youth at his side moved for the first time, jumping up, raising his sword and inserting himself between Nobunaga and the rest of us.

"Hold, Ranmaru!" Nobunaga said, slowly picking himself up, "It's not their fault."

"Ranmaru?" Hannah whispered beside me, "But he shouldn't even be born yet…"

"Are you all right, my lord?" Katsuie asked, moving to help Nobunaga up.

"It seems they are not lying," Nobunaga said, "The swords are somehow enchanted. But even so… I want to see something. Cut their hands free and let them pick up the swords."

"But my lord, in your presence…" Katsuie protested.

"I have all the protection I need," Nobunaga said, looking toward Ranmaru, where he returned to his position on his knees, with his sword waiting and ready.

Our hands were cut free. "I guess we do as he says," Hannah said. We moved forward and picked up the swords. I held the blue one sword and she the red. And if this worked like before, all we had to do was draw them to go home.

"Draw them out," Nobunaga said.

I pulled the blade from the sheath, the weapon again growing unnaturally cold in my hand. As I pulled it out, there was a crackle as a sheen of ice appeared over the blade, then crumbled away from the steel onto the ground. Hannah's was a bit more dramatic, a wave of fire leaping across the blade before dissipating into the air.

But nothing else happened. I had hoped they would send us back home, but it seemed that wasn't going to be so easy.

"Katsuie, what do you think?" Nobunaga asked, seating himself again in front of us.

"It seems none but the master of these blades can wield them," Katsuie said, "I am no expert on the subject, however."

"And you said they were easy to capture," Nobunaga said.

"Yes, lord, they barely even put up a fight," Katsuie said, "In fact, I'd say they are rank amateurs."

"I have one final question for the two of you," Nobunaga said, not taking his gaze from us, "How did you come here."

"We don't exactly know," Hannah said, "When we drew these swords, they brought us here."

"Is that so?" Nobunaga asked, "I suppose that will suffice for now. It also means you don't know how to return to your home, correct?"

"Yes, lord," Hannah said.

"Hmm," Nobunaga rubbed his chin, "Unaffiliated heroes are very valuable commodity, even if they are inexperienced. Very well, I have decided. You will come with us, back to Owari. I want to see what you are capable of. I can't let you fall into another clan's hands to be used against me, after all."

"But my lord…" Hannah started to protest.

"Or I can have you executed now," Nobunaga said, "Your choice."

Hannah looked helplessly at me. It wasn't much of a choice, obviously, so there was only one response I could give.

"How's the weather in Owari?"


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Heart of a Nation**

Okay, where do I even start?

So I guess I should say my name is Hannah, and my cousin is one of the biggest morons in all of existence.

Okay, I guess there's no way he could have known, but what was he doing buying swords off the internet anyway? And when the blades were drawn, zap, we're not in our apartment anymore, but in a thunderstorm, and a very identifiable event going on nearby.

To be honest, I'm surprised I'm not more panicked by the situation. I just watched Oda Nobunaga, the warlord that almost single-handedly changed the course of Japanese history kill Imagawa Yoshimoto.

I know enough about the history to know this was the point where Nobunaga essentially stood up and gave the middle finger to Japan, and it took notice. So the first thought is these stupid swords somehow transported us back in time.

But there's so much that doesn't fit. Like the fact everyone is speaking English for some reason, the fact they seem to ignore the extremely strict protocols of actual Japan of the era, and most important, I saw Nobunaga shoot a beam from his fingers that punched a six-inch hole in Yoshimoto's chest.

I guess the reason I'm holding it together as well as I am is because panicking wouldn't accomplish anything. I just have to deal with the fact Jack and I are now prisoners of one of the most ruthless men of the time. I'd been hoping that just drawing the swords again might send us back, but they gave us no reaction, so at the very least we're stuck here for now.

Though by this point, Jack seemed to be regretting it more than I was. We were forced to march with the soldiers that were also our guards back to Owari for several days. And Jack was beside me, drenched in sweat, gasping for breath just from a marching pace.

"I've told you that you need to exercise more," I said, "I power walk harder than this."

"Good for you," he muttered.

But in the middle of all this, in spite of what was happening in front of me, I still somehow kept thinking about the classes I was missing, though I guess there was no reason to worry about that, considering I had no idea if we would ever get home.

And then there was the question of what was going to happen next. I remembered enough of Japanese history to grasp what was happening at this point, but like I said, something was very wrong, starting with what I can still only call magic, and the fact the lack of surprise displayed by the residents of this place, it must be common.

And the real burning question, what was going to happen next?

I suppose the first clue should have been when city came into view. Kiyosu, the capital of Owari. I remembered enough of history that I knew Nobunaga had taken it from his own relatives when he united the Oda clan by force, and then uprooted and moved literally everyone, the warriors, the merchants, and even the peasants, from the old capital of Nagoya and moved them here. In terms of military defenses, it wasn't as strong as Nagoya had been, but the location made it a prime stop for traveling traders, and it was a powerful center of commerce as a result.

And this was clear as we were ushered into the city proper. Open markets, merchants hawking their wares. Admittedly it was the stalls with fresh food that most caught my eyes. The vegetables, bright and healthy, all the way to steaming meats and breads, and the countless people buying their meals for the day. Many turned toward the soldiers as we marched up the streets, and cheers began to rise even before Nobunaga drew his sword, holding it high and declaring victory over the Imagawa.

As for Jack and I, we were steadily herded toward the castle, an impressive three-story tenshu that rose in the center of the city. We didn't see much of it, and were pushed into a room on the first floor and told to wait until someone came to speak to us, and guards posted outside the door.

As far as I could tell, it was some kind of waiting room, with a few pads on the floor as seats, but little else. There was a small fire pit near the center, probably for making tea, though nothing impressive. You certainly wouldn't be cooking on something that small.

Jack sank to the floor, laying on his back with a groan of relief. "God, I'm used to spending all day on my feet, but my legs are killing me," he muttered.

"Well, enjoy it, because I don't think we're going to be alive much longer," I said, "Where the hell did those swords you bought come from?"

He thought for a moment. "I think it was from a Hong Kong dealer," he said, "I didn't pay that much attention."

"Oh, yes, because Hong Kong is the place where you find all the magic swords that send you back in time," I said.

"I don't know, you seem pretty calm about it," he said.

I glared at him. "And what should I do?" I asked, "Throw my hands up in the air, scream that this is impossible, break down and cry about never going home? Maybe I'm not doing that because it's blatantly obvious what has happened, and doing so would accomplish nothing. In fact, you're the one I'd expect to panic about this."

"Are you kidding?" he asked, leaning up on his elbows and looking at me, "Yeah, my legs hurt. But the past few days, just marching around with these guys, have already been better than back home. I didn't have to go to work that shitty, belittling job, which I was likely to be fired from in the near future anyway. And when we stopped for the night, I know you were sitting there so quietly, but I was listening to what the soldiers were talking about.

"That battle earlier, do you even realize that this Nobunaga guy sent forty thousand men fleeing in terror from his mere three thousand? That's freaking amazing."

"Actually, historians think the Imagawa only had about twenty-five thousand," I said, "Yoshimoto claimed it was forty to try to intimidate Nobunaga. But yes, Nobunaga's surprise attack in the storm sent them into a panic and he drove them off with far fewer men than you'd think he'd need."

"And you see, you know this stuff!" Jack said, "You effectively know the future! Think of what we could do with that!"

"Sorry," I said, "But I wouldn't hold onto that too much. The fact these people are throwing fire and light from their hands makes me think this is not so much the past as maybe a different world. You know, the old trope of being sent to a fantasy world."

"I guess so…" Jack said, "So why is it so much like ancient Japan."

"Four hundred years ago is not ancient," I said, "But I don't know. But if it does hold to history, Nobunaga is the last man we want to be around. He is a vicious killer, his tactics are utterly ruthless and brutal. He's the only daimyo to ever have a city surrender to him, then line up all their leaders and execute them with a firing squad. In fact, if actual history says anything about what's coming next, his next invasion from here will be into his father-in-law's kingdom…"

I stopped when I heard voices outside the door. Jack looked over as well.

"…as if I don't have enough to do already!" said a man's voice, though that might have been generous, as it was a fairly high-pitched and nasal sounding voice. And it was angry about something, "Not even a word, just taking off and all of us having to chase after him. And I think we've gone off on a suicide mission, attacking the Imagawa head on. Now we get back and he's got to throw a couple of green heroes in my lap because none of the samurai are willing to train them… You two can go!"

There were footsteps as the guards stepped away from the door.

There was a second voice, it sounded like a young girl, much softer though still audible through the thin door. "Well, that means he trusts you, right?" she asked, "That's a good thing! And more work will keep you out of trouble. You still only have one bodyguard, you know."

"And what am I being guarded from, exactly?" said the man, "No one wants to kill me! I was a sandal bearer until just a year ago, and now I'm Lord Nobunaga's pet monkey!"

"Let's just forget that you were a thief before that, and a mercenary before that…" said the girl.

"And now I'm supposed to train new heroes. Even Lord Katsuie flat out said I'm not combat ready myself yet, hero powers or not."

"Well, think of it as having sparring partners, then," said the girl, "But the sooner you get this over with, the sooner you can get back to your other things."

The door slid open. The man that stepped in certainly fit the voice. He was thin and lanky, his arms and legs seeming almost too long for his body. I'd had my suspicions from the "monkey" comments, but the man fit the bill even harder than I'd have though. A thick brown head of hair, and large sideburns running clear to his jaw line, though he was clean-shaven otherwise. The thing was the hair was smooth and kempt, not just allowed to grow wild, meaning he actually went for the look.

His clothing was more of what I expected, being distinctly Japanese and of the era, with loose fitting sleeves and leggings, and open sandals. He was fairly young as well, looking like older teens. If he was eighteen, it was by a hair's breadth.

The girl with him was much younger, maybe fourteen or fifteen, with darker brown hair, and big brown eyes that sparkled with intelligence, and a friendly smile that contrasted with the boy's scowl. She was dressed in a fairly normal garb, loose-fitting, hiding much of her figure.

I realized I should probably kneel, and started to do so, but was stopped. "Don't even bother bowing, I'm not in the mood," the boy said, and Jack got to his feet when I motioned him up, and the boy went on, "Look, I'll be straight with you, I'm not happy about this. My lord has informed me that the two of you are unaffiliated heroes, and that I'm to get you into fighting shape as soon as possible. And looking at you," he glanced at Jack's pot belly, "that might take more time than I'd hoped. Though I guess that means for the first few weeks I can dump you in the drill camp and go on with my life.

"First thing's first, my name is Hideyoshi Kinoshita, and I'm very busy right now, but I have to deal with you anyway, so my first real question is do you have any combat experience whatsoever?"

"Well, no," was all I managed, so overwhelmed by this assault.

"Has anyone ever taught you anything about being a hero before?"

"Uh, definitely no," I said.

"Well, that's why you need training then, certainly," Hideyoshi said, "Without it, you're as much a danger to yourselves as others. Sit down, get comfortable, we're going to be here a minute. Oh, one more thing, I've heard you can only use your magic with your weapons. Is that true?"

"I actually don't know," I said as Jack and I sat down on two of the pads on the floor, and Hideyoshi seated himself in front of us, "I've never seen anything like it before."

"Nene, do you know where their weapons ended up?" Hideyoshi asked, looking at the girl.

"I'm sure I can step on some toes and find them," the girl said.

"If you'd be so kind," Hideyoshi said, and with a smile and nod, the girl left the room, closing the door behind her, then he turned back t us, "Before we go any further, though, I have to ask about that clothing…"

Jack sighed. "It's the kind of thing we wear back where we came from," I said before he could comment.

"Where are you from, anyway?" Hideyoshi asked, "I couldn't get a clear answer from anyone else."

"Well, very far away," I said, "We were actually somehow transported here by the swords…"

"Really?" Hideyoshi's eyes went wide and for the first time he seemed genuinely interested, "Teleportation… That would be quite a magic to have. The things I could do with that…"

The door slid open, Nene stepping back in, holding the two swords under her arm. "Remember, their powers are fire and ice," she said, and laid the swords down on the floor, "And remember, Lord Nobunaga got quite a shock when he touched the hilt of one of these."

"Yes, yes," Hideyoshi said, "Just imagining a samurai that could jump behind walls and such. That would be so amazing."

"There are some of us who can do that without teleporting," Nene said.

"Not the point, Nene," Hideyoshi said, "Anyway, let's just start with the basics for these two.

"All right, what we call heroes are essentially people born with the gift of magic. This gift can come in any number of forms, and while many such powers can be similar, it is extremely rare that two people will have the exact same ability. There are people who can throw great balls of fire and incinerate large numbers of enemy troops, or freeze battalions in ice, or maybe you saw it, but Lord Nobunaga can create beams of light that cut as sharply as any blade.

"The vast majority of samurai are heroes, though there are rare exceptions to that. And while they're powerful, there are times that some forget one important fact: Heroes are just as frail as normal people. All it takes is one stab, one arrow, one cut throat and they go down as fast as anyone else. No matter how powerful they are, no matter how many hundreds of men they can fight thanks to their magic, one mistake and it's all over.

"And that's why Lord Nobunaga wants you trained. He intends for you to be useful, and getting yourself killed won't be that."

"Now hang on," I said, "What if we don't want to be soldiers?"

"Then you're no use," Nene said, and from somewhere produced a knife, "and we've been instructed to make sure you can't be used against our clan."

It was far more disconcerting that her voice remained completely friendly, and that smile never disappeared as she said this, or as she returned the knife to wherever it had come from.

Jack looked at me. "I don't really see a choice here," he said.

"We'll have to go along," I said, "Though I do wonder how far Nobunaga think's he'll get if he holds all his samurai under threat of death."

"None of them are," Hideyoshi said, "None but you. But that will change, you'll see. Lord Nobunaga sees far more than any of us. But before we can do anything with you, we need to get you into shape."

"That means exercise, doesn't it?" Jack moaned.

"You could use it, tubby," I said.

* * *

I thought I was in decent shape, but four hours of running and calisthenics in Japan's heat and humidity had reduced me to an exhausted mess. And I knew there was going to be even more tomorrow when they had a full day to throw at us.

Though seeing Jack on his hands and knees throwing up his lunch only a half-hour in proved my point about the shape he was in. And at least as bad as I felt, I hadn't thrown up or collapsed. We would both be sore in the morning, though.

And then the best news all day came, when a member of the castle staff asked me if I'd like a hot bath. And now I was looking at a pool big enough for twenty people, filled to the brim with steaming water.

It was hot enough I had to get in slowly, but when I sank in up to my neck, I let out a long sigh, leaning my head back on the edge and closing my eyes. It seemed unreal that they were intent on turning me into one of these heroes of theirs. The sword I had held had shot flame from the blade, but that hadn't had anything to do with me, did it? I was sure it was just the sword.

I was startled by the sound of bare feet on the floor behind me. I spun, looking up. "Oh, I'm sorry, didn't mean to scare you," Nene said.

"Oh," I sank in the water, trying to cover myself with my arms, "I didn't know there'd be anyone else here or I'd have kept the towel…"

"Oh, don't worry about it, I'm fine," Nene said, dropping her towel to the floor and stepping into the pool.

I felt my face growing hot and looked away, though she made no effort to cover herself as she sighed much like I did.

"Don't worry, no one else will be coming in," she said.

"I'm just not used to bathing with someone else," I said.

"Be glad No isn't here," Nene said, "She gets a little forceful about having someone else wash her hair and back. Her hands also tend to wander…"

No… As in the Lady No… I knew that name. It was one of the names Nobunaga's wife went by, depending on the version of the story. It was a shortened version of Nohime, though her proper name was Kicho, after marrying Nobunaga, she was most often referred to as Lady No. In face, the meaning of Nohime was "Lady of Mino," her homeland. Other than that, though, there was so little about her in our history, I genuinely had no idea what kind of personality she'd have. And Nene's comment had me wondering, did No's hands "wander" to those other than herself, and I shivered in revulsion at the thought.

"Looks like you forgot your soap," Nene commented, moving closer to me and sliding a tray beside her with a yellow bar and a wash cloth within reach.

"Oh, yes," I said, scooting a bit further away, "I just wanted to get in the water."

"Look, dear, there's no need to be nervous," Nene said, "Even if I did like you, I'm married, and not nearly as relaxed about it as No."

"You're married?" I said reflexively, but as soon as I said it was ready to slap myself. That wasn't surprising at all, given the setting.

"Yep, I'm Hideyoshi's girl," she said, "So hands off him, too."

"Oh, don't worry, I've got no intentions of that," I said.

"You know, I love your hair," Nene said.

"Huh?" I looked at her, surprised by the sudden subject change.

She stood up and moved closer to me. "Do you use something to get it so light?" she asked.

"Oh," I self-consciously reached up to my hair, "No, it's just this color. We call it sandy-blonde where I'm from."

"So there's a lot of people with light hair where you're from?"

"Well, yes," I said, "There's plenty of dark-haired people too, I guess we've actually got a lot of everything."

She sank down in the water again by side. "You must feel like you're a long way from home," she said.

I think that was the straw on the camel's back, so to speak. I suddenly teared up, the realization hitting me like a baseball bat to the face. I wasn't just a long way from home, I was in a completely different time, if not a completely different world. My parents, my friends, all of them so far away now, and I might never see any of them again.

I sniffed, trying to keep myself from crying, and failing as I felt the tears rolling down my face. Oh, god, I was completely lost with no idea where I was or where to go, and was being drug along by the current.

And off all things, I found Nene's arms around me as I sobbed into her shoulder. "It's okay," she whispered, "Everything will be all right."

A few hours ago she had pulled a knife and threatened my life, and now this girl years younger than me was trying to comfort me. And for some reason, it was working. There was something about how friendly and warm her personality was. I probably wouldn't be able to stay mad at her about anything either.

"Can I tell you something?" I asked.

"Anything you want," she said.

I doubted she'd believe me if I claimed I might know the future, but I need to say something about it. "Nobunaga… Oh, sorry, Lord Nobunaga, he terrifies me. I'm afraid of what might happen if my cousin and I stay here."

"Oh, I know," Nene said, "It's easy to be intimidated by a man with such a powerful presence as our lord. But when you're around him enough, you start to realize something about him. You know he is called the Fool of Owari, right?"

"I had heard of it," I said.

"Well, I fully know that the name is only believed by those who do not understand him," Nene said, "He is only called a fool because his mind is so far beyond the comprehension of rest of us. After all, my husband was a sandal bearer, but Lord Nobunaga gave him a position as the overseer of Kyosu's development, a position he has astonished many by excelling at.

"Lord Nobunaga has an eye for talent beyond anything I've heard of, and that's why you're here. I think he sees something in you that even you do not."

"I've never been in a fight in my life," I said, "And he wants to make me a soldier."

"Not a soldier, a hero," Nene said, "Give it a few weeks. You might find you like it. After all, there are only a few of us with the Oda right now, and we need more."

"Us?" I asked, "You mean you are also a hero?"

"That's right," Nene said, "We might end up fighting alongside each other in the future. Lord Nobunaga is, of course. The others we have are Ranmaru Mori, who is Lord Nobunaga's personal guard, Katsuie Shibata, whom you've already met, and Ranmaru's father, Yoshinari. And of course, the Lady No as well.

"Though everyone was surprised to find Oichi, Lord Nobunaga's sister, is not a hero. Sometimes the magic skips a generation. Our number of heroes is actually relatively small compared to clans like the Takeda, Uesugi, or the Hojo, so finding two more, even untrained, is very important to our clan's future."

"I still have a hard time believing Jack and I are supposed to compare to names like that," I said.

"Just give it a little time," Nene said, "If Lord Nobunaga didn't see potential in you, I don't think he'd be bothering with you at all."

"Wait a minute," I said, "You didn't mention Hideyoshi in that list."

"Well, that's because he's not a hero," Nene said, "He's got a brain and talent, but not magic. Now, I think we've talked enough," she turned and got the soap from the tray, "We sit here much longer and we'll turn into prunes.

This really was something else, I thought as Nene helped me lather my hair with the soap. I was still not convinced about Nobunaga. That man did a lot to deserve his vilification in movies and video games of my time, but I guessed she was right. If he was going to kill us for no reason, he'd have already done it.

We'd just have to wait and see what happened.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: Birth of the Alliance**

My name is Jack.

Hannah and I had been living in what appeared to be the city of Kiyosu in Feudal Japan for a few weeks before I started to notice it. I thought I was going to die for days, being taken by armed guards out to the drill camps where loud-voiced trainers had us running laps and doing thousands of sit-ups and pushups.

But then one day I realized it wasn't nearly as difficult as at first. In fact, I had energy left over at the end of the day. I looked at myself in a mirror for the first time in a long while and almost didn't recognize myself.

I was so much more tan than I used to be, all that time in the sun, but more shocking even to me was that my stomach had vanished, replaced with a real six-pack. I'd never had abs before. And all those pushups had swollen my arms and chest considerably. I wasn't movie-star level of muscle, but compared to the pudgy, out of shape punk I was a few weeks ago, I was massive.

I'd had trouble jogging the length of a block before, but now I could go for miles without even a sweat.

And the way we were living, it was hardly what I'd call bad. Hannah and I were sharing a room in the castle. Admittedly the only furniture we had were the beds, or futons I think they're called, basically a thin pad on the floor with a pillow and blanket. Still more comfortable than those bunk beds I remember from summer camp when I was a kid, though.

And I wasn't the only one putting on some muscle. She remained quite a bit more sleek than me, but Hannah was showing some definite bulge in her arms, and was sporting a defined six-pack as well. Though neither of us compared to the tree-trunk of a man named Katsuie Shibata that we'd see around sometimes.

And now that we were in better shape and not barely alive at the end of each day, Hannah and I both started to have some free time. Never alone, of course, it was usually Nene with us. She showed us around the castle, and then the city. Kiyosu is small compared to what we were used to, but there was a lot of life in the place.

And with this also came less of the running and calisthenics and a good portion of each day spent getting smacked around with the wooden sticks they called training swords.

And to be honest, I was loving every minute of it. The first week was hell, but now I felt so much better, both physically and mentally. If anything was bothering me, it's that I was getting awfully tired of rice.

"My soul for a cheeseburger," I muttered, idly tracing lines in the dirt with my finger.

"You might be able to find one in about four centuries," Hannah said.

Nene glanced at us from where she stood, watching the outer castle gate. She never commented about the things we said, but I was suddenly conscious of the fact she heard everything we said, and yet never asked any questions when we talked about time like that.

Though for some reason today we weren't taken to the drill camp as usual, and instead were waiting in the castle courtyard with nothing to do. We had been woken early today, and I'd been manhandled by three women tying my hair back and shaving my face, as well as putting me into a much fancier set of clothes than usual, in spite of my protests I could dress myself.

Though "fancier" essentially meant there were more of them, compared to the light and airy outifts we had for the training. I'd have to lose at least half the layers on this thing before I even thought about just running a few feet. But I was also wearing the sword in its blue scabbard at my belt for the first time. I didn't know a thing about how to actually use those ice powers yet.

Hannah also had hers, though considering I paid for it, technically it was also mine, but it was the red one she had somehow shot fire from the first night. Maybe we were finally going to start learning how to control this power. For the same reason I loved just being here, I was thrilled by that thought. I wondered if we'd actually see a battle where we could use it.

"Nene, if I can ask, why are we just waiting here?" Hannah asked, "We've been here for an hour."

"It's nothing too serious," Nene said, "We're not sure exactly when… Hold on, here he comes."

I looked up to see someone approaching us. An older man, with gray hair with only a few streaks of darker lines remaining, and a thick gray beard, but he walked with confidence of one still strong in spite of his age, and his left hand rested easily on the scabbard of his sword behind the guard as he walked.

Nene motioned us to get up, and she bowed at the waist as the man came close. "Greetings, Master Hirate," she said.

Hannah and I also bowed respectfully, though he did not acknowledge us, instead looking at Nene as she rose from her bow. "Hello, Nene," he said with a smile, "You are more beautiful every time I see you. Has your husband been behaving?"

"Well enough," Nene said, "I just give him a good pinch when his eyes start to wander."

"If you need help, I can put him in his place for you," Hirate said.

"It's just old habits I have to train out of him," Nene said, "He used to run with a bad crowd, that crowd being a certain mercenary who think's he's the gods' gift to women."

"Well, if you want that mercenary tarred and feathered, I'm sure I can arrange it," Hirate said, then looked toward Hannah and me, "But for now, we need to get to business."

Nene stepped aside as he moved closer to us. "My name is Masahide Hirate," he said, "I know the two of you have the strange names, Hannah and Jack. Now, I'm not wasting time. I know the two of you are not from our lands, so certain things may be hard for you to comprehend. To put this simply for you, I am Lord Nobunaga's first, which means as far as you are concerned, my is word is law, second only to his.

"Our young lord has great plans for the future, and he needs the support of powerful heroes, and has been gathering all he can find that are trustworthy. And I'll say this, at this point, you two are at the bottom rung of the ladder here. You've come from nowhere and we know nothing about you. Yet when our lord wants something, we cannot deny him.

"So right now, you look me in the eye," and he punctuated this by pointing at his own face, "and you tell me where you have come from and why you're here."

He looked directly at Hannah. I expected her to flinch, but she met his gaze. "Sir, we do not truly know how we came to be here. We're from a land far away form here, yes, and were brought here by these," she touched the hilt of the sword she wore at her hip, "When we first drew these swords, they reacted, and the next thing we knew, we were at the site of Lord Nobunaga's attack on the Imagawa forces. And we do not know how to return home, as the swords do not show such a reaction again when we draw them.

"But…" she paused for just a moment to take breath, "But our home is so far away, it is impossible for us to return without some magical means as well, so we may as well make ourselves useful in any way we can to those who kindly took us in."

Hirate stared at her for a long moment, then turned to me. "And you? You want to be 'useful?'"

"Are you kidding?" I asked, "I was miserable back home. I hated my job, my life, and this is the best thing that ever happened to me. I didn't think I'd like it this much but now, you say useful, hell, just try and stop me."

Hannah was glaring at me. But Hirate's scowl suddenly broke into a smile and he laughed. "Well, you've got enthusiasm, I'll give you that," he said, "But according to Katsuie, you still need a lot of work before you can be useful. I'm still not convinced, but you'll doubtlessly have a chance to prove yourself soon."

He glanced at Nene, then turned away from us, walking a few steps toward the front gate before turning back again. "Have you heard the recent news, by any chance?" he asked, but didn't wait for a response, "Probably not, being in the drill camp from dawn until dark. There have been two fairly important events that occurred in the past few weeks.

"Firstly, the Matsudaira clan, under the leadership of Motoyasu, have declared independence and rebelled against the Imagawa. They've taken northern Mikawa, on our southern border, and according to what our spies say, have every intention of pushing the Imagawa out of Mikawa entirely. This is a little upsetting because our clan and the Matsudaira have been enemies for a long time. They were one of the greatest threats to use during Lord Nobunaga's father's time."

"Lord Nobunaga doesn't seem too bothered by this news, though," Nene said to us, still holding her friendly smile.

"True, and I've done my best to advise him caution, but I believe he doesn't want to believe his childhood friend would turn on him," Hirate said.

"When Lord Nobunaga was a boy, his father, Nobuhide, ambushed a Matsudaira force escorting their lord's son between their cities, and took the boy hostage," Nene said, "That boy would be Motoyasu when he grew up, but in the meantime, he was held in Nagoya, where he was befriended by the young Lord Kipposhi, who would grow up to be Nobunaga. The pair were inseparable for some time.

"Eventually Nobuhide was forced to return the boy to the Matsudaira, in exchange for a hostage they had taken. I believe it was Lord Nobuhide's brother they had taken."

"Motoyasu," I said, "That was the man we saw after the battle talking to Nobunaga. He let him go."

"Yes, Motoyasu is now lord of the Matsudaira," Hirate said, "I believe our lord should not have let him go so easily, but I was not there. In any case, the other major event is that Dosan Saito, the lord Mino to our north, and Lord Nobunaga's father-in-law, has died. There are rumors that he was assassinated by his son, Yoshitatsu, because of rumors circulating that Yoshitatsu may not be his true son.

"But far more important, this assassination occurred only a few short months after Dosan declared that upon his death the lands of Mino would pass to Lord Nobunaga, and Yoshitatsu has declared his claim on the land instead.

"So Lord Nobunaga intends to take Mino by force, as it is rightfully his, and you two will likely see combat there and have a chance to prove yourselves. Any questions?"

"Uh, even if that's the case," Hannah said, "That can't be why we had to get dressed up and have been waiting here?"

"Of course not," Hirate said, "That's because Lord Nobunaga seems to want to show off his find. Lord Motoyasu is expected to arrive any time now."

As if on cue, a loud gong rang out over the courtyard as the guards in the watchtower rang said gong.

"That should be him now," Hirate said, "There are only two things you need to remember for this: Stand at attention and only speak when spoken to. Now follow me."

We followed Hirate across the courtyard toward the main gate. There were already others gathering there. We moved to the side of the cobbled path leading from the gate to the castle itself, standing in line with the others.

The gates swung open, revealing the procession coming in. There was that short, kind of portly man from the battle. So that was Motoyasu Matsudaira, the childhood friend of Nobunaga, and now the head of the Oda clan's longtime enemies.

He looked even shorter next to the man standing just behind him. A genuine monster, he must have been seven feet tall at least and built like a train. God, his arms looked more like battering rams. His armor was thin and light, however, except for the helmet which was adorned with large stag antlers.

"That has to be Tadakatsu Honda," Hannah whispered to me, "He's a fighter without equal. He participated in over a hundred battles in his life and was never wounded a single time."

Holy shit, now that's a badass right there, I realized. I wondered how much that spear of his weighed. I could see the head of it over his right shoulder. Thing is it looked more like the head of a battle axe. The sheer strength it must take to swing that monster around would have to be incredible.

There was one more with Motoyasu. She was a girl, looked maybe sixteen years old, though I'm not a good judge of that. She was also wearing light body armor, with a quiver full of arrows and the shaft of a bow visible over her shoulder. She had to be a fighter, too. Her expression was certainly just as severe as Tadakatsu's.

And from the other direction came Nobunaga, accompanied by Hideyoshi, Ranmaru, and Katsuie. As he walked past us, Nobunaga glanced in our direction. A chill went down my spine as his eyes met mine. He definitely had one of those gazes that pierced right through you, even though his expression was completely unreadable.

"Lord Nobunaga," Motoyasu said, bowing respectfully, and the pair with him doing so as well, "You have my thanks for permitting us welcome to your domain."

Nobunaga did not bow, and retained that impossible to read expression as he came to a stop about two steps from Motoyasu, who slowly looked back up at him. Nobunaga suddenly smiled and stepped forward, throwing his arms around Motoyasu, who nearly jumped in shock, but then laughed, returning the hug.

A moment later, they parted, though Nobunaga kept his hands on Motoyasu's shoulders. "I am so glad you made the trip, my friend," Nobunaga said.

"A much warmer welcome than I received in my own home," Motoyasu said, "Thank you, Lord Kipposhi."

Nobunaga gestured toward the castle and began to walk, Motoyasu beside him, their entourages falling in behind them with only a few glances at each other.

"I'd heard the news of your independence," Nobunaga said, "I was glad to hear that the whelp had grown in spirit as well as in body."

Nene gestured for us to follow and we fell in with the group moving toward the castle.

"Aye," Motoyasu was saying, "I've thought long and hard about what I should do now. I intend to reclaim my homeland of Mikawa, but what about after that? Am I to sit, content, as Yoshimoto did, while the world moves around me, until a young lord with more ambition rises up to take end my reign as well?"

"Come, and we'll discuss this in more comfort," Nobunaga said as we entered the first floor of the castle.

I was starting to feel like we weren't needed when Nene motioned for us to follow into a relatively small side room. I say "relatively" loosely, though. A short table like I was becoming used to seeing. It was long enough to seat maybe six along the sides. Nobunaga and Motoyasu entered and Nobunaga gestured, allowing Motoyasu to seat himself first, then Nobunaga seated himself across from him.

Nene pointed to the back wall behind Nobunaga and led us over there, lining up with our backs to the wall. Across the room, behind Motoyasu, Tadakatsu and the girl did the same. There was one other that came into the room, a woman that looked to be in her mid-twenties or so. Just a bit older than me, actually.

And I had never seen a woman like this. Her beauty was almost indescribable. Aphrodite herself could not have looked better than this raven-haired beauty. I thought it was that makeup they seemed to like here at first, but I realized that her skin was actually that pale. Not really milky, but nowhere close to what you'd call "fair." Thick, full lips, painted almost blood red, and her face highlighted by a single mole on the left side of her chin that stood out prominently on her pale flesh. She took in the room with a quick glance, and though she did not linger on any of us, I could swear her gaze was even more powerful than Nobunaga's.

"Motoyasu, this is my wife, the Lady No," Nobunaga said as she seated herself next to him and quietly placed out cups that were waiting on the table and began to pour steaming tea for the two men.

"A truly striking vision, my lord," Motoyasu said, nodding respectfully to the Lady No, "I have heard the news from the north, that your father-in-law has passes, and left Mino to you. It seems you have full justification to take the land from Yoshitatsu by any means necessary."

"I already have plans in motion to do just that," Nobunaga said, "But before that, I believe that I will rest easier knowing my southern border is watched by an old friend."

"And I will be able to press back into Mikawa with more confidence knowing my north side is safe," Motoyasu said.

"Beyond that, we are both small clans with many large ones around us," Nobunaga said, "Though many of my retainers hold on to the old hatreds of our fathers' time, an alliance clearly benefits both of us."

"Aye," Motoyasu replied, "Some of my retainers are not pleased by my coming here as well, but this is the best way to secure our future. As I said, I must look further ahead than just the reclaiming of Mikawa. And I believe you have plans beyond Mino as well, my lord."

Nobunaga chuckled. "You know me well, old friend," he said, "Indeed, my ambition stretches quite a bit further. Shall I tell you a secret, Takechiyo? I have looked at the state of this world, and I am disappointed. The adherence to tradition and old ideas have stifled invention and innovation. Did you know that some time ago, men from a land called England landed on our shores. They brought with them weapons like we have never seen. The men who found them thought they wielded a previously unseen form of magic, and they shot fire and thunder at them from strange sticks. In truth, these weapons are not magic, but science. Any man can wield these weapons. At close range, they're strong enough to punch through armor we have.

"And with enough of them, say about a thousand, I believe ordinary men can stop almost any force of the old style of combat. Even the Takeda's legendary cavalry would fall before the might of these weapons. I am trying to find them now. If we could acquire even a few of these weapons, I believe the smiths could reproduce them."

"That would be something," Motoyasu said, "Weapons such as they may even render heroes unnecessary to war."

"I have doubts even these will be able to bring down your juggernaut," Nobunaga said, indicating Tadakatsu, where he stood behind Motoyasu, "But the old ways of waging war are going to die. And when the fighting ends, and the smoke clears, a new world of my design shall emerge from the chaos.

"Or… Shall it be a world of our design?"

Nobunaga paused, leaning forward toward Motoyasu, waiting for his answer.

It didn't take long. Motoyasu's face lit up with determination. "Aye, my lord. We shall stand together against all foes and they shall fall before us like wheat. And when it is over, the nation shall be united under one flag for the first time. And that peaceful world is the legacy I wish to leave for my children."

"Wonderful, I'll have my people draft the papers at once," Nobunaga said, and picked up his teacup, holding it up in a toast that Motoyasu matched, "Before the witnesses here, I declare that from this day on, Oda and Matsudaira shall walk together into the future that we create."

They both drank their tea in one go, setting the cups back on the table.

"There is one more thing," Motoyasu said, "This alliance would be unheard of in my father's time. This truly represents a new beginning, not just for my clan, but for myself as well. I feel it necessary to announce this new beginning with my very name. I am not completely forgetting my past, but I must look forward, and to remind me of that, from this day forth I shall be Ieyasu Matsudaira."

"Ieyasu," Nobunaga said, "Something new with something old. Speaking of new, now that that's settled, you mentioned in your letter you'd like to see the strange heroes I found. These are them behind me."

"They are?" the newly named Ieyasu looked up at us, "I'd heard they were completely untrained. They seem too old to begin now."

"You know as well as I do that untrained heroes are as dangerous to themselves as they are to others," Nobunaga said, "Or maybe you don't, not being a hero yourself."

"No fear, my lord, I know exactly how valuable they are," Ieyasu said, "I would not have been able to take Ansho in northern Mikawa without the strength of my friends here, Tadakatsu and his daughter, Ina."

"Yes," Nobunaga said, looking up at the giant, "I would dearly love to see Tadakatsu's strength first-hand, but I dare not ask for a simple demonstration. I also wait for this pair to be ready to demonstrate. I know! Once you have Mikawa and I have taken Mino, we shall celebrate with a grand tournament! What do you say? All the greatest warriors of Oda and Matsudaira competing for glory?"

Ieyasu laughed. "I believe it will go a long way to curbing the disdain many retainers will have for the alliance," he said.

"Excellent!" Nobunaga said, and turned to the door, "Hirate!"

The door slid open, and the older man stepped in. "My lord?"

"Draft up the official papers for our alliance, and Ieyasu and I shall work out the details over dinner tonight," Nobunaga said, and turned back to Ieyasu, "In the meantime, would you like to see my private hunting grounds?"

"I would be delighted," Ieyasu said, "I am a much better shot than when we were children."

Nobunaga laughed. "I'll have to see that to believe it," he said, rising to his feet, and turned to us, "Nene, thank you, you may return these two to their training regime."

Nene ushered us out of the room and we walked toward the castle entrance.

"So, why were we there again?" I asked.

"For display," Nene said, "Lord Nobunaga wished to make it clear that you belong to him and are under his protection. Some lords try to recruit heroes from other lords in rather underhanded manner. Of course, now you've got even more reason to focus on the training, with the promise of a tournament."

"God, I hope I don't have to fight Tadakatsu if that comes to it," Hannah muttered.

"Tadakatsu will be the favorite to win, I'm sure," Nene said, "He's had a very long career already, and his magic in combat… Well, let's just say he's easily the second most powerful hero alive right now."

"Second?" I asked, "Who's number one?"

Nene sighed. "A man in one Oda's vassal clans. He's goes by the name of Keiji Maeda. If only he took anything seriously, he might have a chance against Tadakatsu. Anyway, come on, a few more days of basic drills, and you two should be ready to start learning your magic."

I glanced back as we walked, seeing many of the retainers loitering in the halls until Hirate came back out of the room and reminded them they had things to do. Nobunaga and Ieyasu came out, along with Ieyasu's two retainers.

Last out came the Lady No. Even at a distance, she had such a powerful visage, my eyes were drawn to her almost involuntarily. So that's Nobunaga's wife, I thought. God damn, I knew this era, lords and even retainers would sometimes have courtesans, but I doubt he did with a wife like that.

She turned, looking directly at me. In an instant, her eyes became hard as stone and a frown crossed her face. I quickly looked away, full knowing she knew I'd been staring as I walked. I glanced back again a moment later, and she had gone.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: The Day the Fool Died**

My name is Masahide Hirate.

I've spent the past two decades of my life raising and attempting to educate the man that would come to be called the Fool of Owari. I was given this task by his father, Lord Nobuhide Oda.

I can still vividly remember that day. It was a warm, sunny summer day. Lord Nobuhide was in his war-room with several retainers, discussing the means by which they would placate the local tribes to stop their raiding of our trade routes. Lord Nobuhide believed that the age of war was coming to an end, and coin would be the power of the future.

He dismissed them when I arrived with the news.

"Your wife has given birth to a healthy son, my lord," I proudly announced.

"That's wonderful news," he said, laying down a sheet of parchment and reaching for a brush, "Now, the harvest will be unusually large this year… Perhaps we can sell some to the Asakura and Azai…"

He seemed indifferent, but I knew my lord had much on his mind. He was up before the sun each day, and late into each night, constantly sending letters and reading reports. Trade was the future he saw, and coin was power, and he worked intensely toward that end, even while keeping a watchful eye on the Matsudaira clan to our south.

"I've seen the boy," I said, attempting to steer him back to the subject, "He's quite a beautiful child. I doubt there will be any difficulty finding him a wife when he comes of age."

"I've got a decade at least before I worry about that," Nobuhide said, looking up at me, "I suppose the boy needs a name, doesn't he? That's why you're here. Very well, I name the boy Kipposhi, and you, Masahide, I name his guardian."

I was startled such a sudden declaration "My lord…" I started to protest.

"I'm afraid the future I work for has me far too busy to see to him myself," Nobuhide said, standing up and walking toward me, and he put one hand on my shoulder, "You will raise him in my stead, old friend. Raise him into a man worthy to lead this clan when my time is past. There's no one else I can trust with my child."

"You honor me, my lord," I said, bowing my head, "I will do everything I can to ensure young Kipposhi grows into a fine man."

If only I'd known how difficult that promise was going to be to keep. Kipposhi was healthy and strong, and he grew, I realized he was smart. Almost too smart for his own good. And that meant he was easily bored. Often he went missing, I'd find him outside the castle, playing with the other children in the city.

I'd catch him by the collar and drag him back to the castle, lecturing him that I had left him to work on his studies, and that he'd be allowed to play only after completing them. But the last time I had to do this, when I drug him back to his room, I found his work complete, all the mathematics completed, and when I quizzed him on the reading portion, he answered quick and precise.

"Why didn't you tell me you'd finished before I dragged you all the way back here?" I asked him, even as I looked over the problems on the parchment.

The boy had smiled, a sinister glint in his eye. "You should always wait until the right moment to strike, gramps," he said, "when your enemy is at their weakest."

Not even ten years of age and he was quoting military strategy, I realized. It wasn't quite Sun Tzu, but he knew far more than other children his age.

In this time, Lord Nobuhide's final campaign was underway. He was rarely in Nagoya these days, and was waging battle on two fronts. He had seized the northern cities of Mikawa away from the Matsudaira and managed to hold them until the Matsudaira retreated to lick their wounds. Then news came from the north that Dosen Saito had assassinated his own lord and seized Mino for himself. In the chaos, Lord Nobuhide was pressing into Mino, intending to take as much of the fertile land for the Oda as he could.

I'll admit, I would not try to wage two wars at once if it were me in his place, but my lord was not called the Tiger of Owari for nothing, and he had wisely allied with the Asakura on Mino's northern side to gain their aid in a pincer attack. Dosen Saito was fighting back, but even the Viper of Mino was losing ground against such team.

So instead, I focused on Lord Kipposhi's education. He quickly mastered the basics of economy and managing trade, as well as handling contracts for construction or repairs of the city and land itself. So quickly, in fact, that he soon needed no supervision.

On his tenth birthday he received a from his father the gift of a magnificent young horse. A powerful black stallion with great speed and endurance to match.

Unfortunately this made controlling the boy harder. He took a liking to long rides in the countryside. And I mean extremely long, to the point I was sending out search parties to find him. The time he was away kept growing with each outing. By the time he was fourteen, he was leaving for days at a time. At last one time he returned with another riding on his horse with him.

"Lord Kipposhi, where have you been?" I demanded as he dismounted, "The city will not govern itself, you cannot simply leave any time you wish! Especially without your guards! What if you had been captured by bandits?"

"Oh, lay off it, gramps," Kipposhi said, "I wasn't captured by anyone. And why can't the city govern itself? It's certainly a boring enough job. A monkey could do it."

"You have a responsibility…" I started, only for him to interrupt.

"I'll prove it!" he said and pointed to the other rider, who was looking at me with a great deal of fear, "I've brought the monkey!"

It was a boy about Kipposhi's own age. And "monkey" certainly fit. He was tall and lanky, his arms slightly too long for his body, and it looked like his beard was coming in early compared to most boys.

"I'm going to teach this monkey to govern, and then he can do it for me while I worry about more important things," Kipposhi said.

"Who even is this boy?" I asked, then looked at him again, "What is your name?"

"H…Hideyoshi, sir," the child said with a cracking voice, then cleared his throat, "That is I am Hideyoshi Kanoshita."

"I'll see you at sword practice, gramps," Kipposhi said, "Got to train my monkey after all."

"Oh no," I said, "Not without me, you're not."

The worst part was I couldn't stop him. He was old enough that I no longer had the authority to take him over my knee or truly countermand his commands.

But I was surprised. Hideyoshi was a smart boy. Almost as smart as Kipposhi himself. I don't know where they met, but when I asked, Hideyoshi told me he had no family. He'd traveled with the Saika mercenary band for a time, tending their horses and weapons, and though it took some effort to coax it out of him, before that he was thief, stealing what he needed to survive. He wouldn't tell me about his parents. Maybe he never knew them.

And as expected, it wasn't long before Hideyoshi was taking over more and more of the governing on Kipposhi's authority while Kipposhi himself was away on whatever flights of fancy he had at the time. And this was the time when Kipposhi began to be called the Fool of Owari by the people. His behavior was so erratic and strange to us all, many believed he truly was a fool.

And then a truly fond memory, I must admit. Hideyoshi and I had gone to the market to inspect what the merchants had brought, and he excused himself for just a moment. When he came back, he was carrying something in his hands, muttering to himself.

"I think I got it all…" he was saying.

"What did you have to buy?" I asked, leaning over to see. Though he tried to hide it, I caught a glimpse. "Marbles and jacks?" I asked, "Why are you buying children's toys?"

He turned scarlet, swallowing hard, before quietly replying, "Well, I was in the market a few weeks ago and… I met this girl. Her name's Nene. She started following me and… well…"

"A bit young for you if those kinds of things she likes," I said.

"She's ten right now, actually," Hideyoshi said, "And yes, I told her as much, but she wouldn't listen, and now every time I come to the market…"

He was interrupted and even I didn't see her until her arms were around his waist, hugging him from the side. Nene was indeed a girl of ten years, and a cute girl with brown hair, deep brown eyes and winning friendly smile. Very quickly I realized it was hard to not like her.

What I found out and that Hideyoshi did not realize was that she was in training as a member of our ninja clan. And it seemed that no matter how hard they tried, they simply could not break her of her emotions. Ninja must be cold and efficient, but Nene was so bright and cheerful. They did things that left her in tears, wailing her lungs out, but she always recovered, never could she stop letting herself be the bright person she was.

And she had attached herself to Hideyoshi, and he to her. I heard later that Kipposhi intervened, speaking with the ninja clan leader, and though it was unusual, he agreed to release her. And thus the unthinkable happened, a ninja was married. Hideyoshi was fifteen at the time, and Nene was twelve. But I could see it in both their faces, there were no two happier people alive. And Lord Kipposhi often made fun of them, the girl that married the monkey, but Nene saw through his jests, and it wasn't long before she greeted him with a hug each time he was around, startling his guards, and more than once I heard the question from one guard to another of "Is she allowed to do that?"

And seeing her in the castle halls was always a bright spot of the day. She was always smiling, and could always melt away any unease one was feeling just by being in her presence. And now, at fifteen years old, she was only just beginning to blossom as a woman, yet the childish cuteness was giving way to true beauty. I could easily believe that by the time she was grown, she would rival if not surpass even Lady No in womanly beauty.

But as Kipposhi grew, so did his intelligence. I could see it. Behind the smile, the laughter, and all the oddities, that icy stare that pierced right through a person. I began to wonder if the fool was all just an act. His magic came to be as well, proving he had inherited the power of Hero. He was able to create beams of black light that could slice a man as effectively as any sword, and I watched many practice dummies fall to the earth with mere waves of his hand.

The magic reflected what I saw in those eyes. He was just as deadly with his mind as he was with his magic. And Hideyoshi's marriage reminded me that Kipposhi was coming of age as well, and it was time to find him a bride.

Lord Nobuhide's campaign came to an unfortunately abrupt end when the Asakura withdrew their support, their final act only to mediate peace talks between the Oda and Saito. Lord Nobuhide ceased his military actions at that point, focusing solely on building Owari as a center of trade. When I approached him about his son's need of a bride, he smiled at me.

"I already have one in mind, and have exchanged letters with her father," he said to me, "Tell me, old friend, what do you think of my son wedding the daughter of the Viper of Mino?"

"Dosen Saito's daughter?" I said in shock, "Give your history, I doubt he'd be amenable to the idea."

"If he wasn't getting old himself, he might not have agreed," Nobuhide replied, "But he and I both have to look at what we're leaving our children when we pass."

"So you leave an alliance between Owari and Mino," I said, "That's certainly a powerful gift for the future, my lord. I'm sure Lord Kipposhi will be pleased."

"I think after this, I'm going to retire anyway," Nobuhide said, "Give Nagoya to Kipposhi completely. That new castle we've built east of the city seems a good place to spend my last years."

"I'm sure you have many years yet, my lord," I protested, "After all, you're younger than me."

"No, old friend, I feel it in my heart," he looked over to the window, at the setting sun, "I don't have the energy I used to. You're still quite spry, but this tiger's fangs have grown dull. And besides, if a wife doesn't settle Kipposhi's behavior down, real responsibility will."

Ah, so that was his plan. Leave Kipposhi with as little free time as possible, and force him to grow up. It might have even worked, given a few more years. Unfortunately, even Lord Nobuhide did not realize how much time he had left. Sickness took him from us only a year later.

I can still remember it vividly. Lord Kipposhi behavior at the funeral started more talking than ever before. I saw him go to the altar to pay his respects, only to let out a wail of grief, hurling incense at the memorial slab before running from the shrine, all eyes following him. And the whispers started.

"What kind of man acts like that at his own father's funeral?" Katsuie Shibata had asked me after the fact, "He's the one his father chose as his heir! And he's just as much of a fool as they say!"

"He has lost his father before his proper time," I said, "Everyone handles grief differently. Give some time."

"Time for us to be invaded because our leader is a weak fool, just as they say," Katsuie said.

The following day, however, Lord Kipposhi had recovered, and walked with his head high, and the power back in those eyes. And he also announced his new name. As his father had passed before granted him his adult name, he had chosen it himself, and thus Nobunaga Oda came to be.

Lord Nobunaga wasted no time. The Oda clan had split harshly by the death of Nobuhide. While Nobunaga was the rightful heir, others stood up to try to claim the title, using Nobunaga's reputation as the Fool of Owari as justification.

I rode with him as Lord Nobunaga invaded Kiyosu, taking it from his uncle along with the rest of northern Owari, and then launched a mass migration from Nagoya to what would be his new capital. The only rival left within the Oda then was his own brother, who had fortified himself, along with their mother and Katsuie Shibata and all the men willing to follow, in their father's old castle.

It was scarcely a battle. Katsuie led a charge out the main gate into Nobunaga's forces, only to have his forces splintered an be captured himself. The castle did not last a week under siege before they surrendered, and Nobunaga brought all of Owari back into his control.

It was truly remarkable then to see young Nobunaga stare down Katsuie, a veteran warrior of his father's time.

"Kill me," Katsuie said, "I am your enemy and would not see you lead. Give me the death I deserve?"

"And what will that accomplish?" Nobunaga asked, "If you die, everything you care about dies with you. You have been a faithful soldier in my father's time, why not mine? You have built no cities, accomplished no legendary feats. All you death will be a footnote in my growing tale.

"You are shamed by your defeat, I understand. But if a warrior of your caliber cannot shoulder that shame, cannot survive it, then you are no true warrior. I can forgive the triviality of you sided with my brother, Katsuie. But can you survive the punishment you give yourself? If not, I will give you the death you ask for. But if you can, then stand with me. Stand with me and we will change the course of history!"

"You would call trying to kill you a triviality?" Katsuie asked in disbelief, and smiled, "My lord, you either truly are a fool, or you are so far beyond normal men that we cannot fathom the depths of your mind."

Nobunaga smiled at this. "Then come with me and see which for yourself."

With Owari stable and his dissenters pacified, Nobunaga set to work building. For what, exactly, he never said. His rapid growth drew the attention of the Imagawa, and this led to the attempted invasion by Yoshimoto, only for Nobunaga to intercept his forces and kill him that stormy night.

And that was also when those two strange foreigners came into our grasp. I could not counter Lord Nobunaga's orders, but I did try to reason with him, that he was giving them too much free reign when we knew nothing about them, but he would not listen.

"Look, gramps," he said as he mounted his horse, "Save me the lecture, all right? I don't have the time. The worthless peons I call Samurai can't even get me a foothold in Mino, so I obviously have to do it myself. I've got preparations to make, and you're my time."

"My lord," I protested as Ranmaru climbed onto his own horse, "if you would tell me what you need, I could arrange for…"

"I said save it," Nobunaga said, "Lecture me when I get back if you want. I don't have the time."

He turned his horse toward the gates.

"Very well, my lord," I said, "I shall write it in a letter, and you may read it at your leisure."

"Do whatever you want," he said and spurred his horse, riding out of the gate, the only guard with him the young Ranmaru.

I could feel this might be my last chance. Responsibility and adulthood had done nothing to curb Nobunaga's tendencies, and if anything, he was only growing more irresponsible. His taking in those two strangers was just a drop in the bucket of this behavior. I'd promised Lord Nobuhide that I'd raise him to be a wise ruler, and thus far I had failed.

I knew what I needed to do. But first I decided to check in on those two young ones. They had at least been well behaved in the weeks since taking them in.

They were in the training yard, as expected. The boy and the girl, and there was Nene, all seated some distance from the actual training fields. I knew she was no doubt taking them through the steps to learn to control their magic, and this was confirmed as I came closer and heard her saying as such.

"You need to be calm, most of all," Nene was saying, "When you fought Katsuie, you used your magic by pure reflex. That is extremely dangerous and more importantly, not reliable. You need to search inside yourself and find your center, your still point. From there you can draw your power as easily as breathing."

Judging by the expression on the boy's face, he was not convinced, though the girl was sitting calming with her eyes shut. Either she was putting real effort into it, or she was taking a nap.

"You know, Nene," I said, walking near them and causing them to all look up, "from what Katsuie tells me, saying they fought him is a bit of a strong word."

"Okay, met him," Nene said, "They met him."

"I assume by now you'd put up a bit better fight?" I asked with a chuckle.

The boy, Jack, looked up at me. "It's easy after you figure out the pointy end goes into the other man," he said.

Hannah glanced at him, but said nothing.

"They're just having a bit of trouble finding their still point," Nene said to me.

"Have you tried focusing with their weapons yet?" I asked, "Some find it easier with a weapon to channel through. Like Toshiie."

"I have a question," Hannah said, "Is it really supposed to be as easy as you claim?"

With a nod and a smile, Nene demonstrated. There was no visible effort on her part, but her magic was not a direct destructive force like many others. It was seamless, almost, as two copies of her materialized from nothing, and there were three identical women sitting where she was.

Jack's eyes went wide. "Wow, that's unreal…" he said.

"You can create illusions of yourself?" Hannah asked.

"You're both wrong," one of the copies said.

"We're all real," said the other.

"I can split myself into three," the real Nene said, "There are limits, of course. I can't maintain it for more than about twenty minutes, and if I try to spread out more than about ten feet from each other, the copies dissipate. But other than that, my selves can operate almost independent of one another."

"A power certainly useful within certain limits," I said.

"Hideyoshi likes it," said one of the copies.

"Yeah," said the other with a mischievous smile, "Especially when we-"

She was suddenly cut off as the real Nene spun and clapped both hands over the copy's mouth. She then looked up at me and smiled nervously.

"They do sometimes have minds of their own, though," I observed, "Where is Hideyoshi?"

"He said he was going to write a letter to an old friend," Nene said, "Though I hope it's not the friend I'm thinking of."

Ah, the Saika mercenary, I thought. It was very hard to be disliked by Nene, but I knew the man of which she spoke. She considered him a horrible influence on Hideyoshi, and I understood why, though the man's ability with a spear could not be denied.

"In any case," I said, turning back to the two young ones, "Sometimes it helps to learn to focus your magic through a vessel, like your weapon. Toshiie Maeda might be able to help you there. I understand his magic is barely able to blow out a candle normally, but when he focuses through his sword, he creates a blade of wind that can leave deep cuts in even solid stone. In fact, Nene, why don't you go get him? He might be able to help these two."

"That's a wonderful idea," Nene said, hopping to her feet, her copies vanishing as quickly as they appeared, "I saw him on the training field himself a bit ago. I'll be right back."

As she departed, I looked at the other two. There was one thing I needed to ask them first. "Tell me," I said, "Why did you come here? And why have you not made any effort to leave?"

"Well," Jack said, "There isn't really a reason, it was kind of an accident as far as I can tell. But it's the best thing that has ever happened to me. I was miserable back home, working a job I hated, had no real life. After what I saw the night we arrived, honestly I don't know why it is, but I want to be part of this. I want to learn this magic and be a fighter."

Youthful enthusiasm. We'd see if that lasted long. But the girl…

"And you?" I asked her.

"I don't know," she said, not meeting my eye, "It's not like I left much behind either, but… I don't really know what to say."

But that said more than enough to me. She was confused and lost, not sure of her place in the world yet. Well, she'd have a chance to find it soon, I was sure. Either she'd find a reason to stand up and fight with my lord or she'd face exile or death.

* * *

When Nene returned with Toshiie, I excused myself and returned to my chambers in the castle. Those two were harmless enough, so I turned my attention to my other matter, the letter to my lord.

I lit a candle, setting it and parchment on my table and then retrieved the ink and brush and set to work. The words were easy, and it did not take as long as I expected. Satisfied, I rolled the paper and used the candle wax to seal it, stamping it with my signet ring, and finally addressed it for Lord Nobunaga's eyes alone.

With that done, I stood and walked to the window, looking out over the city. It was a grand city, and I had no doubt would only grow from here. My lord's methods might be strange from the eyes of viewers, but they never failed. He was right, Kiyosu was a powerful economic center and brought in great wealth from traveling merchants with each passing month. And with that wealth, Nobunaga bolstered our military, building our forces for the push into Mino that was certain to happen soon.

I wondered what Lady No thought of the coming invasion of her homeland, and the thought of fighting her own brother. She was even harder to read than Nobunaga himself. She was the daughter of the Viper, and looking her in the eye was much like staring down such a poisonous creature. She appeared outwardly cold, but in brief moments around Nobunaga, I saw the mask slip, and she looked on him with warmth and smile.

My lord's ambition would not stop with Mino, I knew that. But if anything would stop him, it would be his own reckless nature. All my efforts to curb that through his childhood had failed. There was only one way left open to me now.

I kneeled down in the center of the room, taking a deep breath as I steeled myself. I picked up the knife I had prepared earlier, slowly sliding it from the sheath, the metal glinting in the candle-light, and turned the point toward myself.

At least I'd finally see my wife again.

* * *

My name is Nobunaga Oda. They call me the Fool of Owari, but I can tell none of them are looking as far ahead as I.

I had returned from my covert meeting with the Azai diplomat and went to my chambers, intending to take enough time to eat before I checked in on my newest two heroes when I was stopped at my door by a guard.

"My lord," he said, his head low and his voice trembling, "Something terrible has happened."

"Well, out with it, man," I said, "I don't have time for cowards who cannot speak."

"My lord, Lord Hirate has taken his own life," he said.

Like shattering glass, my senses went numb. That was not something I had expected, by any sense. All my life, he'd been like a great stone, a seminal figure in everything I did. I had spoken to him mere hours ago, and he killed himself.

"Why?" I asked, "Why did he do this?"

The guard offered in both hands a rolled parchment. "A letter addressed to you was found in his chambers, my lord," he said, "The seal bears his signet."

I could see that. The wax was unbroken. I took it from him and told him to leave, and entered my chamber, closing the door behind me.

Wasting no time I broke the seal and unrolled the page. It was Gramps' handwriting, all right. I couldn't mistake it for anything else.

 _My Lord Nobunaga, I write this that you may read it at your earliest convenience. There is very little I can say to you now that I have not already, so I will not waste your time. The only thing I want you to know is that I have seen the ambition in you. Mino will just be the start of your goals, and you will grow far beyond that one quickly. But you need to realize that you are just one man. You insist on leading by example, that is fine, but you rush ahead without aid, trying to do everything yourself. Trying to shoulder the weight of the world on your own will only result in your being crushed by your own ambition._

 _You have an ability to inspire. Men and women follow you willingly because they believe in you. But if you do not allow them to help, then they are of no use. And then they will abandon you, because you do not believe in them. Temper yourself, make use of their skills and you can accomplish things you never could alone._

 _With the right companions, I believe you could change the fate of this nation, nay, this world. And if Gramps opening his belly manages to convince you of that, then it will not have been a waste. Stand tall, Kipposhi, and remember that the Fool who rushes toward his fate all too often finds it. Be the leader of men you are destined to be, and change this world. I believe in you even now._

 _Masahide Hirate_

 _Gramps_

It became more difficult to read as I approached the end, the tears in my eyes blurring my vision. I could feel the wails coming, building up in my chest, and I forced myself to choke them back, crumpling the letter in my hands as I sank to my knees.

He killed himself.

He killed himself because of me. Because I would not listen. I knew it to be true.

Ever since I was a boy, I was disobedient. What I did, I did because it was fun. My avoiding lessons, my friendship with Takechiyo, even bringing Hideyoshi to do my work for me. Because I wanted to have fun, to escape from the dreariness of the life forced upon me.

And now I rushed ahead, intent on finishing my tasks as quickly as I could so I could go back to that, to simply enjoying life.

And he killed himself just to make me realize that. The people were right. I truly was a fool. And now it had cost me my oldest friend.

"All right, Gramps," I whispered, "You win. I'll take this scolding to heart. I promise that."

I still had my chance ahead of me. But I could slow down. Bring in help and stop spreading myself so thin. Hideyoshi was a smart one, and Katsuie was an exemplary leader in battle. I also had Keiji and Toshiie Maeda, powerful heroes in their own right. And those two young ones. Yes, I could make use of them all.

I would do it. I would become the leader of men Gramps believed I can be, someone they could look up to and follow. I did not have to completely sacrifice my fun and freedom, but I had to be responsible about them.

I would change the very fate of this land of Japan.

On this day, the Fool of Owari died, and in his place stood a man ready to take this responsibility.

I am Nobunaga Oda, lord of Owari.

First Mino, and then Japan. It will all be mine.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5: The Mercenary**

My name is Hannah.

I couldn't believe it, but it had been almost two weeks since my life changed beyond my control, and today I learned to throw fire from my sword.

Toshiie Maeda was the instructor Hirate had brought to us. It still seemed unreal, in spite of everything else going on when Toshiie demonstrated by drawing his sword and after only a few seconds of concentration, the blade lit up with red light, and with a swing he sent and arc of light through the air, ripping several practice dummies more than twenty feet away apart, splinters and straw flying everywhere.

Maybe it was seeing someone else do it, but something clicked, and I was able to find that still point Nene had been talking about. It was like all my cares, all my worries, all my stress just melted away in an instant. In that still point, I found the heat, grasping hold of it, and opened my eyes to see the blade of my sword covered in flame from the guard to the tip, and I swung the blade wide across in front of me, the flames leaping through the air, smothering the target dummies and leaving them blazing as the source of my fire died.

"I did it," I said, not quite believing it, but there the dummies were, fully aflame, "I did it!"

"Yay!" Nene cheered, clapping her hands.

"Oh, wow," Toshiie said, rubbing one finger under his nose, "You could probably get fifty men in formation with that blast."

That was a less thrilling thought, causing my feelings to sink. The only thing I'd be using this for is killing. It seemed sort of unreal and far off, the thought that part of all this training was that I would have to fight, and kill, other people. And if I didn't, Nobunaga would probably have me killed.

I don't think I'll ever get used to this crap.

"Okay, my turn," Jack said, stepping up to the line facing the dummies, and I stepped back.

"You're past the hard part," Toshiie said as I moved near him, "Now you just need to practice tapping in until you can do it quickly and with pressure on you. Nothing more terrible than needing the magic in battle and not being able to find it."

Toshiie… I was struggling to remember much about him from my knowledge of history. He was a soldier in the Oda army, that much was clear. From what I could remember, he was exiled by Nobunaga for some offense, but his nephew, Keiji Maeda, as well as Katsuie Shibita recruited him for the attack on the Imagawa forces, and his performance there had led to Nobunaga allowing him to return.

He had a powerful presence. He was tall, muscular, and I'll admit, pretty good looking. He carried three weapons at all times, it seemed. A sword at his hip and a pair of short spears in holsters over his shoulders. And he was incredibly patient with Jack and my struggles to understand the powers these swords held.

Though then there was Keiji. He had come out to the training field, standing some distance away while Toshiie worked us through the steps to unlock this power. Now Keiji was a genuine giant, I'd say about as big as that monster, Tadakatsu had been, but unlike Tadakatsu, Keiji was strangely not nearly as intimidating.

One would even think he would be. He was built like a mountain, dressed in bright red clothing with a depiction of a tiger on his chest, and had a thick mane of black hair tied into a loose topknot that if let down, I've no doubt he'd resemble a lion more than a tiger. And that spear he carried so casually against his shoulder. It was more like a battle-axe on the end of tree branch, and the back end had a thick, heavy counter-weight the size of a small child.

And the next time I looked his direction, he'd moved some distance further away and was laying on his back in the grass, arms behind his head, looking like he was sound asleep.

"Jack, you need to stay calm," Toshiie was saying, "You're getting frustrated, I know. But that only makes it harder to find your center."

Jack sighed, though it was more like a growl, and put down his sword, resting the hilt against his leg as he wiped his hands on his clothes. Well, I couldn't say the process was easy for me.

I've never studied much of the whole zen and meditation thing, and this was very similar to what I'd expect. Calming all your thoughts and finding your center, and when I found it, there was the fire that I could grab hold of and unleash in a torrent in front of me.

Problem was it took several minutes of focusing to find that fire. And then the entire reason for this was that these people expected me to fight with it, and to even kill.

God, about a month ago, I was just a student with a normal life and now I was going to be a soldier. And if I refused, that maniac Nobunaga would cut my head off. I'd hoped, so hoped for the first week or so that I'd wake up back in my own bed and this would have all been a bad dream.

At this point, I was following along only because I was scared shitless of the alternative.

* * *

Jack was not able to summon up the magic of his weapon by the end of the day, though I managed to shoot a jet of fire from my weapon twice more over the next three hours of practice. One thing about it, this was tiring work. I was ready to collapse as Nene walked with us back to our room where we'd have a change of clothes waiting before going to the baths and then dinner before bed.

It was a break of the routine to find a boy, maybe fourteen or so, waiting by our door. He bowed politely to Nene and us, then said, "Lord Nobunaga desires your presence. You are to wait in his public audience chamber."

"We'll be there immediately," Nene said, and with another bow, the boy was gone at a run, clearly with somewhere else to be. Nene turned to Jack and I and smiled, "I think our lord wishes to check in on your progress."

"That's great," I muttered, falling into step behind her as she gestured for us to follow, "Am I going to get to kill someone tomorrow?"

"Unlikely," Nene said, "You need a great deal more practice first, until you can call your magic in an instant. In fact, I imagine he'll be impressed with your talent, Hannah. You are only a week into the actual discipline of your magic and you're already getting a small taste of it. It took Lord Nobunaga four months of effort to reach this point. I needed three weeks. You are extremely talented."

"Oh, so I'm not terrible, I'm just average then," Jack said.

"I'm sure you won't be far behind her," Nene said.

Curiosity got the better of me. "Has anyone ever done it faster?" I asked.

"Keiji Maeda," Nene said, "If I remember correctly, he only need two or three days to begin to tap his magic."

"I think I saw him today," I said, "He was taking a nap in the grass."

"That was him," Nene said, "While Lord Toshiie is rarely not on the training field, you'll almost never see Lord Keiji actually training himself."

"Are you serious?" I asked, "That guy's built like a mountain. How is he that big if he never trains?"

"I once asked him about that," Nene said, "The only response I got was 'Does a tiger need to train to use its fangs?' I'm not sure what he does to stay so conditioned, to be honest. Just a fair warning, if he ever invites you to dinner, don't accept an offer for a bath in his home. He thinks it's quite amusing to keep a guest bath filled with icy cold water. His own uncle was quite livid upon discovering it the hard way."

"Well," Jack said, "I can think of worse pranks."

"Save that for later," Nene said.

We had reached the audience chamber. The guard had clearly been told to expect us, and he bowed and slid open the door for us, motioning us to enter. There was no one in the room waiting for us, so Nene motioned for us to seat ourselves. The furnishings were no doubt sparse compared to European throne rooms, instead there were simply two lines of thin padded mats on the floor, arranged so that up to ten people could seat themselves on their knees on each side of the room. At the far end of the room was a larger mat where Nobunaga himself would no doubt sit during meetings with his inner circle.

We weren't waiting long, in fact, no sooner had we seated ourselves than the door slid open again and Nobunaga himself entered the room, and the youth named Ranmaru Mori followed only a few steps behind.

Nene bowed low as Nobunaga walked passed us, and Jack and I followed her lead.

"If you'll be patient for just a moment, there's someone else I need to speak to first before I get to you," Nobunaga said without even glancing our direction.

Ranmaru seated himself next to where Nobunaga's seat, facing back toward us and the door, but Nobunaga himself remained standing. It was only a few more moments before the next guest entered the room. It was a woman, she looked a few years younger than me, dressed in what I can only say was an extremely traditional Japanese gown, her hands tucked inside the large sleeves as she walked. She glanced down at us, giving a soft smile to Nene, before moving toward Nobunaga.

"Ichi…" Nobunaga said softly as she approached him, "I'm glad you came. We need to have a talk."

"You know I always have time to listen for you," the woman said, "I'm just wondering why we're not doing this in private."

"Because it is official business," Nobunaga said, "The past few weeks, I've been meeting with diplomats from another clan…"

"Ah, you intend to have me marry into the Azai clan," the woman said.

Nobunaga's expression shifted, for the first and only time, I saw surprise on his face. This caused the woman to laugh. "It's not that hard to figure out," she said, "You've been meeting with the Azai, and need to speak to me about official business. Your intent to make Mino your own is clear, so it stands to reason you'd seek allies to help you achieve that goal, and a marriage alliance is one of the easiest ways to create strong bonds of loyalty."

Nobunaga chuckled. "My sister is a wise woman indeed," he said with a soft smile, "So you have no objections?"

Ah, his sister. I knew her now. Oichi was her name and she was Nobunaga's younger sister.

"I've seen in your eyes the fire that our father saw," Oichi said, "You're going to change the world. I wasn't born with the magic of a hero like you, but I want to help in any way I can. And if I can make one of your potential enemies an ally, why would I object to that?"

"Now you're really making me feel like scum," Nobunaga said, " I could not ask for better family."

"No, you couldn't," Oichi said, "So when will I be leaving to meet my husband?"

"Not yet," Nobunaga said, "He will be coming here by next week. In fact, I intend to hold the wedding here as well. His name is Nagamasa, and only recently became lord of the Azai when his father passed. And besides, I need to do my part as the scary brother-in-law to scare him into treating you right."

"Well, don't scare him off before I get to meet him," Oichi said, "Will there be anything else, brother?"

"No, we shall speak more later," Nobunaga said, then glanced toward us, "I have other matters to attend now."

Oichi bowed her head politely before turning and walked away from him. She again glanced at us as she passed by, an amused smile on her face, before leaving the room, the guard sliding the door shut behind her.

There was something bothering me about her. A thought at the back of my mind I couldn't quite grab hold of. It had to do with Oichi, certainly. I couldn't quite remember what became of her in history. But I couldn't shake a bad feeling. And of course, it had to do with the man she called "brother."

"Now, Jack and Hannah," Nobunaga said as he seated himself cross-legged on the large mat, "You two seat yourselves here so I can speak to you. You as well, Nene."

We settled ourselves a short distance from him. Nobunaga's eyes never left us as we moved. His expression was as unreadable as ever. There was nothing threatening about it and yet once again, those eyes. Looking him in the eye sent a chill down my spine. No matter how many times I saw him, there was always that feeling that he knew far more than he should just by looking at you.

"You can relax, dear," he said directly to me, "I'm not planning anything untoward. Just checking in on your progress."

"Hannah here has managed to take the first step," Nene said, "Jack is going to need a bit more time, but I expect them both to be showing great progress in the next few weeks."

"That is good to know," Nobunaga said, "Now, I believe it's past time for an exchange. You two are strangers here, you must have many questions, and I have a few for you. So how about we make a game of this? You ask me a question, then ask you one. Give and take. Does that sound reasonable?"

"If we ask first, let me," I said, "What do you intend for us?"

"I should think that obvious by now," Nobunaga said, "I intend for you to become heroes in my employ. You will fight for me, earn fame and rank and possibly riches. You may even one day earn lordship and your own lands as my vassals. That is what I intend for you."

"You know, that sounds good to me," Jack said, glancing over at me. I wish I could understand why he was so enthusiastic about this. Though I'd admit, he'd certainly come to life over these past weeks, compared to the depressed introvert I remembered.

"I am glad to hear that," Nobunaga said, "Now, my turn for a question. Hannah, I've noticed you seem to know a great deal of our culture and many of the people in my employ, as well as others. You were brought here by magic… But I do not believe you are truly from a distant land. Tell me the truth… Are you travelers in time?"

Nobunaga's expression had turned hard. He already knew the answer, and was almost daring me to lie to him. And if he had guessed that much, then he was no doubt fishing to use my knowledge of history to his advantage. This man was even more dangerously intelligent than I realized.

"I thought that at first," I said, "But the fact is magic does not exist where we are from. It never did. I can only guess that we have not been moved through time, but perhaps to another world."

I was making it up, but after saying it realized it sounded more likely than anything else thus far. I was just pulling it from every fantasy story I ever read.

Nobunaga scratched his chin, staring hard at me. Again sending chills down my spine. "A pity," he said at last, "But never mind, it's not that important. You may ask again."

So he _had_ been hoping to use my knowledge of history. I felt like I'd dodged a bullet there. But my immediate questions had been answered. Jack jumped in, asking when the conquest of Mino would start, which Nobunaga laughed as soon as they were able to get a foothold to attack the capital from, and that at the moment the Saito forces were preventing any of his retainers from establishing such a foothold. That was the point of the Azai alliance he'd been working on, to gain help from a clan on Mino's north, thus being able to attack the Saito from two sides.

Which led to Nobunaga's next question, which he directed at Jack. "You seem far happier than your cousin with the prospects of what is occurring," he said, "It makes me wonder what your old life was like."

Oh, now he was getting personal. And getting Jack started like that…

Sure enough, Jack launched into the usual moaning about his job, the degrading way people talked to him, and the nonsense about being so depressed he even contemplated suicide back in high school. Yes, I'd heard it all before. The internet generation at its best.

And yet Nobunaga was latched onto his every word. I couldn't believe it. He listened patiently as Jack told him stories of his job at that fried chicken restaurant of being insulted and abused by his boss and co-workers.

"They insult your integrity and you did nothing to challenge them?" Nobunaga asked at last, "Why not challenge them to a duel? That is the course of things, after all."

"Uh, that's illegal," Jack said, "Has been for a long time. Hundreds of years, I think. I kill someone, duel or not, I get life in prison, or even the electric chair."

"You're from a world that forbids a man from defending his own integrity?" Nobunaga said, "The only ones who benefit in such a world are the cowards."

Okay, well, culture shock aside, I can't say he was wrong. Still, Nobunaga was taking everything Jack said at face value. I wondered if maybe I had dismissed it all too quickly and he did have serious problems with his life that he was freed of here. He certainly never complained about the way Nene or Hideyoshi spoke to him, and they had been nothing but courteous and respectful to me.

"I understand now why you are so pleased to be here, but that does not explain you," Nobunaga said, turning to me, "I can only assume you were better off in your old home."

"Well, I wouldn't say it was perfect, but I wasn't unhappy, I think," I said, looking at the floor.

"Perhaps one day you will find a way to return," Nobunaga said, "But I think for the moment you should focus on what is in front of you. So the final reason I asked you here, Hideyoshi has asked my permission to take you out of the city for a time. He believes that taking you away from the distractions and noise for a few days will help with your training."

"It sometimes does, depending on the person," Nene said, "Interesting he did not mention this to me yet."

"Well, you're the one who married the monkey, after all," Nobunaga said with a small smile, "Maybe you should train him better."

"Oh, we're going to have a talk," Nene said.

"Well, you three are no doubt tired," Nobunaga said, "Sorry to cut the game short, but I believe that is enough for the night. On the morrow you shall leave the city to train further. And I'm sure you will have mastery of your magic soon, Jack."

I glanced at Jack. He seemed somewhat surprised by the comment, but then bowed his head to Nobunaga.

We were dismissed and Nene took us back to our room. There was at least one weight off my shoulders, now that it seemed Nobunaga wasn't going to suddenly change his mind and cut our heads off. I just wondered what was going to happen tomorrow.

* * *

Nene woke us early, Jack and I getting dressed and following her outside. The sun wasn't even up, but there were horses saddled and ready, and Hideyoshi was waiting for us as well. Without any further explanation, we were on our way, out of the city and into the lands beyond. Immediately surrounding the walls were the farmlands that stretched for miles, but before long we were beyond them and the sun was coming up.

It was beautiful, in its way. An ocean of grass as far as the eye could see over rolling hills. Owari was a fairly level land, no sudden changes in elevation. You wouldn't see that until you went further north or east, if I remembered my geography as well as history.

There was a soft breeze, but not enough to defeat the warmth of the morning sun.

"How far are we going, dear?" Nene asked Hideyoshi.

"Just a little further to the river," he replied, "I think that would be a good place."

"Should have brought a picnic," Nene said.

Honestly, Hideyoshi was acting a little strange. He kept looking about, checking behind us, as if he was searching for something, or maybe expecting someone to try to sneak up on him. Even as we reached the river and dismounted, he was still checking around, distracted.

Nene had Jack and I sit down by the river and began the usual steps, starting with meditation. It was relaxing to hear the sounds of the river and the birds in the air instead of the usual shouting of the training field. To smell the fresh air, instead of the sweat and dirt, was another great feeling.

I was shocked when a sudden scream of rage came from nearby, causing us all to look up as Hideyoshi screamed back at it. I saw him there, about twenty feet away, and there was another man. They were struggling and I saw sparks flying from grinding metal where Hideyoshi's sword slid against the reinforced underside of what looked like an old muzzle-loading rifle.

Jack and I jumped up, but Nene stepped in front of us, holding up her hand. "Wait a moment," she said as Jack started to draw his sword.

"Damn you," shouted the newcomer at Hideyoshi, "You'll pay for what you did!"

"That's what you think!" Hideyoshi shouted back, shoving him back and creating an opening between them, "You won't escape this time!"

The man charged at Hideyoshi with the bayonet on his rifle, only for Hideyoshi to turn it aside and try for a shoulder-block to knock him down. They crashed into each other, tangling together and falling in a pile on the grass with cries of pain.

Or at least, I thought they were pain, and then I realized they were laughing. Both of them.

"I should have guessed he'd be here, the way Hideyoshi was acting," Nene said.

"Who is it?" I asked.

Nene sighed. "Magoichi Saika."

"What was that?" the man, Magoichi, asked though his laughter, "'You won't escape this time!' Could you be any more of a cliché?"

"What about you?" Hideyoshi asked, sitting up, and put on a awkward face, "'You'll pay for what you did!' I could barely keep a straight face!"

"Who is this guy?" Jack asked.

"A friend of Hideyoshi's from his mercenary days," Nene said.

"Mercenary days?" Magoichi asked as he and Hideyoshi climbed to their feet, "Is that what he calls the boy following us around and feeding our horses now?"

"You're barely older than me, you mook," Hideyoshi said, "You're lucky they let you sharpen their blades."

"Hey, I at least got to do something with the weapons," Magoichi said, "Also wasn't dumb enough to get married. Hello, Nene. So good to see you again."

"I see you haven't been killed yet, gods forbid you make me happy," Nene said.

Clearly Nene did not care for this friend of Hideyoshi's.

"Oh, my dear, you wound my poor heart," Magoichi said, then looked up toward me, "Oh, and who's this lovely dear?"

"Well, Magoichi, you know my wife," Hideyoshi said, "These two are Hannah…"

"Hannah," Magoichi said, walking directly toward me, "A strange and exotic name… Don't look like you're from around here either. So good to meet you, my lovely lady. My name is Magoichi Saika."

I was in shock, not really reacting as he reached out, taking my hand and lifting it to kiss my fingers. He was close enough to finally get a good look at him. He was dressed in light clothing, but not the loose-fitting hakama most men wore around here, instead his outfit was almost European in design, with slimmer trousers and a jacket with short tails. His hair was tied in a loose top-knot, and his face darkened with a five-o'clock shadow, and he looked up at me now with a big smile, showing off his perfectly even teeth.

And that did it. I saw through him like a glass window.

"Not interested, pal," I said, pulling my hand free of his grasp.

"Oh, but you didn't even give me a chance," he said, not losing that smile, "I'm a very likable guy, just come get something to drink with me…"

"Um, I'm Jack," Jack said, mercifully trying to interrupt this.

"Good for you," Magoichi replied without even looking at him.

"Magoichi, I didn't ask you to come here to flirt, you know," Hideyoshi said, "I need your help with something."

"I figured as much," Magoichi said with a sigh, finally turning away from me.

"Oh, don't act like that," Hideyoshi said, "I promise you'll get paid this time. And it's a short job, should take more than a week."

"Geez, don't even give me a chance to guilt trip you little," Magoichi said, tapping his rifle against one shoulder, "How about I just shoot the rest of the fun for you?"

"Look, Magoichi, I need help," Hideyoshi said, "I've got some authority, but not over the military. So I need guards. Lord Nobunaga is seething over the fact his retainers can't get a good foothold in Mino."

Seething? He didn't seem like that to me last night. But then again, I had no idea how to read the man.

"See, what's happening is he wants a fort built in Sunomata," Hideyoshi went on, "The fact is, though, the samurai march up there like they own the place, and the Saito come down and kick them out before they can get anything done. So I figure the best solution is to call you, and we do this our way."

"Ah," Magoichi said with a smile, "So you want my mercenaries to run interference while you get the fort built. We don't need to hold the Saito, just slow them down."

"Exactly," Hideyoshi said, "If we can get proper defenses in place before the Saito arrive on site, then just a few heroes and a couple hundred men can hold off any attackers short of a real army."

"And you can get the supplies you'll need to build it?" Magoichi asked.

"Of course," Hideyoshi said, "I don't have authority over the military, but I can requisition building supplies easily. How much are you going to need?"

"Well, since you're my friend, I'll give you a discount," Magoichi said, "Five hundred gold coins in advance, and another thousand upon completion."

Good god, that was a small fortune he was asking for. These mercenaries must be really good to demand that kind of price. I wasn't sure about the real exchange rate, but I think a good horse ran at about a hundred coins.

"Done," Hideyoshi said with no hesitation, "I can be ready to start this by the end of the month."

"Sounds good to me," Magoichi said, "I'll head home and round up the boys. I'll send you a message when we're ready to move out. And when we're done, I'll buy you a drink with the money you pay me."

"No you won't," Nene said.

"Are you still holding that grudge?" Magoichi asked, turning to her, "It was an honest mistake."

"My husband drunk to the point the can't even speak and his hands inside a loose woman's dress is not a mistake, it's a nightmare," Nene said, "You're a bad influence, Magoichi."

"Well, you need at least one in your life," Magoichi said and turned back to Hideyoshi, "Well, if that's all, I'll be on my way. Good seeing you again, old buddy."

"You too, Mago," Hideyoshi said, "Try not to too many girls pregnant on your way home."

"And you try to get at least one," Magoichi said and winked at Nene, who did not respond, though a slight red tinge appeared on her cheeks. "And you, my dear," he said, turning to me, "Maybe we'll have more time later to convince you I'm not all bad."

"Oh, I'm sure you've got a heart of gold," I said sarcastically, "Give me a break. I'm not dumb enough to fall for a guy just because he's good looking."

"Ah ha! I am good looking, you admit it!" Magoichi said with a laugh, causing me to groan and a felt my face grow warm. Yeah, okay, he was. Big deal. Doesn't fix the fact even Hideyoshi's joking about him being a manwhore. If anything, I'd be worried about catching something from him more than anything else.

With a final wave he was walking away from us to where he'd tied his horse some distance downstream.

God, the day was just getting started and I was already sick of it. And the worst part was I likely would see Magoichi again in the near future, and knowing his type, I'd be practically fighting him off with a stick. I'd sooner take that bath with Lady No and her "wandering hands" Nene warned me about.

On second thought, I didn't want that either. That woman was even creepier than Nobunaga.

But while I did not realize it at the time, this meeting between Hideyoshi and Magoichi was the first event in a very long chain that would determine my future in this land, the effects of which would be felt until the very end.


End file.
